GONG SHOW 2020

Some questions — as we come up on election season 2020.

I notice the re-appointment of ASG Treasurer Ueligitone Tonumaipe’a to a four-year term on the government’s Employees’ Retirement Fund Board, with the governor’s qualifier: Tonumaipe’a’s membership on the board “is crucial” given his position as Treasurer in government, which “allows for arms length collaboration between the government and the board.”

So - Tonumaipe’a is expected to be the ASG Treasurer no matter who is elected in 2020 — that’s only over a year away — to be governor? Does Gov. Lolo know something that we voter-minions don’t?… GONG!

And that “arms length collaboration between the government and the board…” isn’t that part of the problem with the Fund? The government is treating it like they own it — and can do anything they want with it, including borrowing the hell out of it?

They don’t own it, the employees own it… where is their representative? …. GONG!

I saw the Fale Laumei renovation project. Three questions:

1.  When did Pacific Refrigeration become a building contractor? I know about their background in air conditioning, but ‘building/ renovations’?

2.  One of the biggest points to commanding a good price for renting an auditorium is its sound system — so, $28,500? What are they putting in there — a DJ sound system?

Did they even ask a sound engineer what was needed? Because, It’s not about the volume, it’s about the quality of the sound… Does anyone remember the FIJI concert last year —  the DJ sound system that was rented constantly crashed as it overloaded the Fale Laumei’s circuits with its volume?

When Samoana Jazz & Arts of American Samoa had their festival a couple of weeks later, there was no such occurrence with their rented equipment, because they brought in a sound engineer who ran the whole system off his iPad.

3.  And, what’s with the curtains? They look like they cost more than the sound system if you look at it in terms of electronics vs. cloth-material.

I’m curious though: Where are the curtains going? On the windows and on the stage, or one or the other? And why does it need a painting contractor to hang them? Are they going to be made/sewn locally? “Now wouldn’t that be precious…”

Here’s a thought:

We now, as a people, supposedly own a top of the line submarine cable that’s delivering us life changing bandwidth by opening up new avenues for local sustainable economic growth… at least that’s what they’re saying as they justify taxing the hell out of us.

So — I know we live on a rock, people, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean — but no one said we have to act like “we live on a rock in the middle of the Pacific Ocean”… we owe ourselves that much respect at least… GONG!