Transcript
The Prime Minister of Tonga is confident the country will bounce back from the devastation caused by Cyclone Gita.
Last week's storm severely damaged buildings and crops and left many homeless.
'Akilisi Pohiva told Koro Vaka'uta he has taken a back seat to disaster officials but is happy with the job they are doing.
'AKILISI POHIVA: I was able to travel around and have a look at the damages, huge damages, both Eastern and Western sides, however it is not my job to collect information because NEMO [National Emergency Management Office] is a government department which is responsible for the collection of data and information and all that. They have been doing the work a few days before the hurricane arrived and worked non-stop up to where we are now. They have all the information and they provide information. This is how we deal with the hurricane so I am not much involved in dealing with this, or cabinet. My role is to have a look and we had a meeting last week and we established a government body which is responsible for the whole operation. Our task is to just oversee and then intervene anytime there is a need to do so.
KORO VAKA'UTA: Are you happy with what you have seen from NEMO and others? I know some people have wondered if it is a little slow.
'AP: I am happy. You see all the people, they are young people, this is the first time for most of the workers to see and to handle such a huge damages brought about by the hurricane to the country. To me at least they have been doing their work pretty good. There have been complaints from certain parts of the country but this is how things work. We cannot expect that everything goes smoothly.
KV: One thing I have noticed, Prime Minister, going around, that despite houses broken, trees down, crops down, Tongans are still smiling and joking.
'AP: Oh yes, yes, yes. That is what I have found when I have visited villages in the country. Most parents are serious, especially people whose houses were destroyed or half destroyed but people they feel sorry for what had happened but they still enjoy life. Remember, you know, that Pacific people, especially Tongans, are very simple. They are not complicated. Most people, they know how to handle disasters.
KV: Not just houses, we saw the parliament which has been around since 1892 being destroyed. Moving forward, what do you think of the significance of that?
'AP: I look at it from a positive perspective. This is part of the renewal process. When we started way back in 2015 we started bringing reforms to the country, to the government, and this is part of the renewal process. The dissolution of the House, (King Tupou VI dissolved parliament in August, triggering November's snap elections), was part of the process but that was, what do you call? Ahhh....anyway...
KV: I guess, symbolic maybe?
'AP: Yeah, yeah. The magnitude of the damage is part of the renewal process. Let nature do it. Our job is to reconstruct, rebuild the country and to learn how to handle disasters.
