IT is not what the people of Fataleka expected to hear from their visiting hero, Premier Daniel Suidani when he addressed them at Bethel Village over the weekend.
But they did.
“If guns were as plentiful as bags of rice in our local shops, we should all buy a gun each. We are at war. We will march to Auki and destroy the police station there. We will destroy the prison in Auki and we will chase Chinese businesses from Auki,” he told the crowd.
Premier Suidani went to Bethel Village in East Fataleka – the scene of a recent shoot-out between police and supporters of M4DD founder, Knoxley Atu – on Saturday allegedly to hold a reconciliation.
But instead, the Premier had something else on his mind.
He reportedly made inciteful and inflammatory remarks which have reportedly angered many and confused many more, prompting a call on the Premier to resign immediately.
Israel Siau, a young man from Ward 14 where Bethel Village is located said yesterday police should arrest the Premier for inciting violence.
Instead of getting people in the community to work together, he is inciting them to commit a crime for no reason at all. Mr. Siau said the Premier never followed protocol in his two-day visit.
For example, he never had the courtesy to inform
- the MPA for Ward 14 that he was coming;
- the East Fataleka High Council Chiefs that he was coming;
- heads of tribal landowners of his visit;
- the people expected him to talk about projects for their area;
- Talking about buying guns publicly as he did is not the sort of thing you expect to hear from a respectable leader
Mr. Siau said Premier Suidani should stop “brainwashing the people of Malaita” in his campaign against China.
“We, the people of Ward 14 welcome anyone and everyone including China to invest in developing our resources. Development does not happen via promises. We need to see some tangible on the ground,” Mr. Siau said.
He said the people of Ward 14 are still waiting on the Premier to apologise and reconcile with them for the events in Auki during last year’s vote of no confidence which had to be aborted because of violence.
Mr. Siau said it was very clear Premier Suidani’s visit to East Fataleka on the weekend was to launch his new political party for the 2023 National General election. Premier Suidani is believed to be eyeing contesting the Fataleka seat under the banner of his new party to be called MARA.
“This again is a waste of public funds,” Mr. Siau said.
Premier Suidani was accompanied by his political advisor, Celsius Talifilu and M4DD general secretary, Ratu. All three men spent the weekend at Mr. Atu’s residence at Bethel Village, according to Siau whose village is next door.
Meanwhile, Mr. Siau urged the people of Central and West Kwara’ae to remain vigilant, given the inciting remarks that Premier Suidani had made about destroying Auki.
“That’s our town, Look after it. People who make it their business to destroy government institutions and private properties should have no place in Auki or elsewhere for that matter,” Mr. Siau said.
By Alfred Sasako
