PACIFIC MEDIA NEEDS TO INVEST MORE ON ITS REPORTING

HISTORICALLY, THE Pacific media culture has been a trouble one. It is because there has never been a great investment in the Pacific media and the recognition of the roles of a Journalist or the media.

Given the hurdles faced by Pacific Island countries and the vulnerabilities, the media is responsible to cover rising issues on environment, health, sports and human rights.

It is understood that freedom of media in the Pacific is often facing many cultural and traditional challenges in the hybrid communities.

Also, due to pressures, pendulum of press regulation and censorship, the efforts of reporters and media organizations to do an in-depth coverage on issues like corruption are often hindered media.

The media landscape in the Pacific needs recognition and a platform for development on certain areas that the public needs to know.

Back in 2012, at the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) summit, Fiji`s Prime Minister, Josiah Voreqe Bainimarama revealed that Pacific media Organisations should invest more in their reporters and editors.

He furthers that Journalists are under paid for their efforts and at times, they are used and abused, untrained and unappreciated. 

Journalism is noble profession and it is the responsibility of individual journalists to put more effort in informing, educating and advocating to the public.

Questions were also raised regarding public trust on media and whether the ideal is to serve the readers, government or to serve the truth, a triggering and debatable question that need answers.

The media should keep people informed as technology and challenges from outside influences in fluxing into the region.

The late father John Lamamni, the publisher of Solomon Star once revealed that there is a need to develop best forms of collaboration, governance and human interaction in order to establish the collective good to benefit all people.

He states that to develop the best quality of life across the Pacific and to allow people, to create opportunity and security and thus a Pacific embedded in freedom, justice and peace is inevitable.

According to Netani Rika, a research professional, he said that media in the Pacific has never stood together to report issues.

“We need accountable leaders.”

He furthers by challenging journalists that they need to stand for their right and to tell people the truth by making sacrifices.

In addition, the University of the South Pacific (USP) Journalism Coordinator, Shalendra Singh said that due to ethnic and religious makeup in the pacific region, journalists encounter hurdles in investigating, approaching and compiling a story.

Perhaps, the paramount of ethos within our society is the repercussion of less output of stories we have in our daily papers or aired news stories.

Also, with the scattered geography location it always makes it difficult to be accessible to information.

Our Pacific media should invest more on climate change, health or human interest stories and other areas of life that need to be told and to recognize roles of reporters.

To date, the Pacific media needs an in-depth coverage on rising issues such as climate change, human rights, and health issues or more on human interest story thus it will help change the Pacific media landscape and media fragmentation responsibly.

POLITICS IS INEED THE STUFF BETWEEN OUR FINGERS !

POLITICS IS indeed the stuff between our fingers ! Whether it is a small island nation, a third world developing country, a developed country  or a member of a G8, the game of politics remains the same. It is only the degree, at which it is played that changes.

Coming from a small island nation in the Pacific, I must say that even though we receive the bulk of our education funding from Australia and other aid donors and it enters the country as “clean money” , the politics is underlying the true intentions that initiated the aid are very shady. For the student, it arrives in the form of an award letter and a monthly stipend into a local account.

For the community member it comes in the form of a new water tank, a solar panel, an OBM, a new health center, health or school and in return, some customary land is lost to investors through lack of enforcement( or rather willingness on the part of the government to turn a blind eye on the law) of the land use and land lease procedures.

For the government it comes in the form of brand new shiny vehicles, overseas trips to sign treaties  that do not necessarily concern us and which we do not fully understand ourselves and accommodation in high class hotels for a mere two weeks.

All this in return for our government`s signature –another petitioner on the list.

The WTO: cheap goods at the expense of the local economy, at some point  we will end up with less that 10% exports and more than 90% imports- We knew that but we signed anyway!

Frequently, the governments that have been formed have always accommodated  the included floor-crossing, either to the government side from the opposition or vice versa, the sacking of MPs  and switching of ministerial portfolios  as the such the continuance of musical chair  or grasshopping politics.

The majority of our honourable members can barely read and are expected to sign a document that they themselves cannot even begin to comprehend – Oh but wait! A new house, an added 200k bonus, a holiday in Europe- And all of a sudden, our conrable members can read and write in fluent English and understand the contents of the documents  for signing trips overseas for what purpose?

The tax free entitlements and other benefits that members of Parliament alone know the contents of, such is politics.

It is obscure whether the current government will do away with the shady dealings or else we will topple in the same pit again.  Lets wait and be disappointed,  Naf nao!

MUSICAL CHAIR POLITICS AT STAKE

THE MUSICAL chair politics in the Solomon Islands is on its feet again. Recently, the crossing over of the trio MPs to the government side has prompted concern as to why and how does Members of Parliament (MPs) move freely forth and back from the opposition to the government side when there is an integrity bill in placed unless it is rectified by the bill.

For the MPs, the crossing over to the government side or vice versa is for the goodness of the people and the nation as they will suggest, while for others it is “POLITICKING “, or for self-interest.

 

The grass hopping of MPs from the opposition side to the government or vice versa is owed largely to the infusion of many hidden agendas. It may be for some unforeseen reasons perchance good or bad- It may engender on the issues of nepotism, wantok system or islandism, favoritism or misappropriation of funding`s, who knows!

Historically, the governments that have been formed have always accommodated the “musical chair”  or grass hopping politics if you like. Having said that, in the Solomon Islands, it has becoming a norm that within any ruling government all proper financial proceedings  can be over ridden by political will whether it is in the best interest of the people, nation or not.

Dr. Gordon Nanau, a politics lecturer at the University of the South Pacific once revealed that the instability within SI government is also the cause of the never-ending musical chair politics of the national parliament.

The lately crossing over of the MPs might portray appalling picture on the current government, hence, citizens’ trust and welfare  on the current DCC government might be in jeopardy.

In addition, the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) or what the current DCC government termed as “ PEOPLES` BUDGET”, have generate high expectation from rural-urban people. But who knows, the crossing over of the trio MPs might be numerically attached to the peoples` budget funds or not let`s wait and see!

Furthermore, the CDF are not used for its intended purpose, as there is other personal and political demand to attend to by the Politicians. This creates major instabilities in the government as it has proven the major reasons for MPs tripping over to the government side to the opposition or vice versa.

A political science scholar Derick Mane divulged that the crossing over of MPs are politics of patronage- Politicians worry more of their voters than issues of this nation.

Mane furthers that MPs switch to where they can find sources to sustain their voters for the next election. 

The trio political figures that moved over to their current political benches are eyeballed and will be criticized by the opposition groups and their constituents if their performance and tasks as MPs are not fulfilled.

The numerical attachment of the MPs moving forth and back is an alarming issue requiring an in-depth probing. Should there be a bill or the recent marionette integrity bill to address these musical chair politics will be of importance.

It is unclear whether the crossing floor of the MPs emanates from the reasons of self-serving. The question boils down to what is the stand of the integrity bill. Is the integrity bill still enforced?