Guam - corruption charges
Seven officials in Guam have been indicted on corruption charges.
The Guam Daily Post reports they include two Cabinet ministers and two mayors.
They are being prosecuted by the Government Corruption Division of the Office of the Attorney General.
A media statement issued by the authority stated "no one can be treated above the law", and that the Attorney General is committed to "rooting out waste, fraud and abuse".
PNG - crime
Papua New Guinea Police Commissioner David Manning has renewed calls for a vagrancy act following the recent spate of violence.
It follows the arrest of 56 people for their alleged involvement in a riot at Koki near Port Moresby on Monday.
Manning said there is an alarming increase in violent crimes and especially ethnic-based violence within the National Capital District.
Manning said a vagrancy act would be a temporary measure only and drastic measures must be taken to improve the socio-economic outlook for the country.
Meanwhile, police and military investigators are looking into the recent incident which left two soldiers dead and two other people injured.
The acting Commander of NCD and Central Province, Laimo Asi said an investigation team went to Kupiano on Tuesday.
Asi confirmed 12 suspects were arrested, and detectives have identified the soldier responsible for discharging live ammunition that killed and injured the victims.
Vanuatu - market strike
Photo: RNZ Pacific - Moera Tuilaepa-Taylor
Vendors at Port Vila Central Market have been on strike, protesting the introduction of scales at the market.
The secretary the Association of Vendors, Jacqueline Tassong, said the government's price control unit hadn't consulted them before the introduction of scales last Friday.
Tassong said the vendors, most of whom are women, had found that with the scales they get less money compared with what they got before.
She said the vendors, who are also farmers, are struggling because of the pandemic and the recent cyclones.
Fiji - road toll
Fiji's road toll has reached 48 - more than triple the number of deaths for the same period last year, which was 15.
FBC News reports the death of a 21-year-old man in Lautoka this week, after he allegedly lost control of his vehicle.
His 23-year-old passenger was admitted to hospital in critical condition.
Police say crashes and fatalities continue to rise because drivers and pedestrians are disregarding road safety rules.
Cook Islands - Head of State
There are plans to rebuild an official residence for the Cooks Islands' Head of State more than 10 years after the existing building was deemed unfit for purpose.
The Cook Islands News revealed in February that King's Representative Sir Tom Marsters had never slept a night there.
Parliament has since released details in the 2023 /2024 Budget with regards to the appropriation of $252,000 for the Head of State.
The News says that, being about 50 years old with a multi-pitch roof, the building continuously experiences roof leaks, despite repair attempts by government.
It said the Cook Islands Investment Corporation has assessed the residential building requires extensive works.
New Zealand - scholarships
New Zealand Minister for Pacific People's, Barbara Edmonds, has announced scholarships for 220 Pasifika health and nursing students in the country.
The scholarships total close to $US1 million.
Edmonds announced the scholarships at the Manukau Institute of Technology in south Auckland.
Pasifika in New Zealand experience high rates of disease, and Edmonds said growing a Pacific health workforce would improve health outcomes.
