Cook Islanders off to the polls in August
Cook Islanders will go to the polls on August the 1st.
The Queen's representative Sir Tom Marsters this afternoon dissolved parliament and announced the election date on national radio.
Photo: Cook Islands government
The Cook Islands Electoral office said voter registration is open until June 20th.
Nominations for election candidates will open on June 21st and close June 30th.
The chief electoral officer, Taggy Tangimetua said the 49 day turnaround to polling day is the shortest she has ever seen in the Cook Islands.
Samoa still recording significant Covid numbers
Samoa has confirmed 126 new community Covid cases, and another two other cases at the international border.
The Health Ministry's latest report said 14,315 cumulative cases had been recorded for border and community cases, with eight in managed isolation.
The total number of Covid-19 positive cases admitted to hospital since community transmission on March 17, is 278 admissions and of those, 238 have been discharged home.
The Health Ministry continued to stress vaccination remains the best defense against severe effects of the virus.
Marine Le Pen's votes sought in New Caledonia
New Caledonia's politicians linked to the French president Emmanuel Macron are seeking the support of Marine Le Pen's National Rally for Sunday's second round of the French National Assembly election.
The two candidates of the anti-independence four-party coalition came first in the first round last Sunday and will face the two candidates of the pro-independence FLNKS.
While the French prime minister Elisabeth Borne wants to block the far right, in New Caledonia the two sides are poised to work together.
The National Rally chapter in New Caledonia said it only agrees with the Macron bloc over being given a statute for New Caledonia to be within France and the loosening of the electoral rolls.
It suggests it should be included in negotiations with Paris when talks begin about the territory's future after last December's rejected of independence from France.
Hopes to encourage more Pasifika into strongman
This month's Taste of the Pasifika Festival in Auckland showcased an all Pasifika and Maori strongman competition over the weekend.
It featured events such as bus pulling and truck pushing, performed by some of New Zealand's strongest powerlifters.
The competition winner, Stanley Cocker, said he hoped the display would encourage more Pasifika and Maori to take up the sport.
"I guess its just for us Pasifika and Maori people to showcase the sport of strongman because its not well known," he said.
"Everyone knows rugby and rugby league in our communities but not really the sport of strongman so I guess for us its to put on a show for our people."
Stanley Cocker is currently ranked New Zealand's second strongest man, with an average bench press of over 350 kilos.
Fiji students owe hundreds of millions in unpaid loans
The Fijian government is struggling to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in unpaid student loans from almost 30,000 people who have benefited under its tertiary education loans scheme.
The chief executive of the Tertiary Scholarships and Loans Service, Hasmukh Lal, said they need to collect more than $US158 million in arrears from 29,762 students - meaning each person owes the government more than USD$5300.
The Scholarship and Loan Service has confirmed it has entered into an agreement with the national tax office to strengthen the loan recovery process.
Fiji Revenue and Customs Service head Mark Dixon has urged students to repay their loans.
Pasifika tatau features on NRL side, Gold Coast's jerseys
The NRL Gold Coast Titans are auctioning-off jerseys this Saturday with all proceeds being donated to Tonga relief funds. 14 June 2022 Photo: Gold Coast Titans
The NRL Gold Coast Titans are auctioning-off jerseys this Saturday with all proceeds being donated to Tonga relief funds.
The jerseys worn in Saturday's game against the St George and Illawarra Dragons, features traditional Polynesian and Melanesian tattoo patterns.
Its designer, Brisbane tattooist Matiu Liga said the Titans wanted a Pasifika theme as a part of the NRL's "Inspire Round", where clubs adorn jerseys with indigenous art work.
"The club contacted me and they really liked the idea of an on field jersey and so I got into contact with them and then was working with dynasty, with the manufacturers of their jersey, and they ended up announcing that they would do it for inspire round in the NRL itself as game day jersey, so that's pretty much how it came to be," Liga said.
