Archive - Jan 19, 2012

Fa’atulaga vaega tupe e totogi ai malaga loia

Ua talia e le Faamasinoga Maualuga le talosaga na fa’aulu e le tamaitai loia fautua lea ua tofia e tulai mo Siaumau Siaumau Jr., mo se vaega tupe mai i le malo, e na te auai atu ai i se a’oa’oga o le a faia i Amerika, ina ia mafai ai ona aloaia lona tauaveina o le mataupu faasaga i le ua molia, ona o lea o lo o i ai se talosaga  a le malo ina ia fa’asala Siaumau Jr., i le oti.

Associate Justice Lyle Richmond yesterday ordered the Treasury to immediately issue travel authorization for Siaumau Siaumau Jr’s lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Leslie Cardin to travel off island to attend a required death penalty re-certification seminar.

Former local Department of Education official Paul Solofa went on trial yesterday at the federal court in Washington D.C. on charges of obstruction of justice and witness tampering stemming from his role in the school bus spare parts scheme at the time he was head of the DOE business office several years ago.

No other details were available on federal electronic court records as to yesterday’s proceedings, however, not much is expected to be released when it comes to opening and closing arguments as well as witness testimonies.

While a petition opposing the Fagatogo main port area site for the StarKist cold storage facility has been circulating since Tuesday, by a group calling themselves, “Committee in Defense of the Main Dock in American Samoa”,  StarKist Co. president and chief executive officer In-Soo Cho has responded to local criticism over the company’s plan to build on the 42,000 square foot parcel of government land that lies directly between the Port Administration building and the inter island dock.

Gov. Togiola Tulafono has submitted for Fono confirmation his new appointments for director of the Agriculture Department and reappointments for the director of Education Department and Chief Procurement Officer.

The nominations, all made in separate letters dated Jan. 10, are now put in resolution form for introduction in both the Senate and House.

AGRICULTURE NOMINEE

The cast of hit movie Sione's Wedding have given their families and friends in Samoa an excellent start to the year with a red carpet premiere of their new sequel Sione's 2: Unfinished Business.

It has been five years since they were last in Apia and the Duckrockers were welcomed back with open arms.

The American Samoa High School Athletic Association (ASHSAA) Football, 2011-2012 Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the Junior Varsity division was awarded to Aliioaiga AJ Filoialii this week, a Sophomore from Tafuna High School.

He is the son of the Reverend Filoialii and Fa’afota Filoialii of Faleniu and Manu’a.

Nisi o tamalii ma ponao’o o le itumalo o le Maoputasi i le maea ai lea o le sailiga tofi i le aso Tofi na tea nei, ma faapaleina ai le  afioga i le Tapunuu ia Tiumalu Telesia Scanlan na te faaauauaina le tofi Senatoa na umia e le afioga i le Maopu ia Amituana’i Eteuati. 

Le  afioga i le Tapunuu Tiumalu Telesia Scanlan was selected by the District of Maoputasi last Thursday to take the senate seat, vacant since the passing of le afioga i le Maopu Senator Amituana’i Eteuati.

A majority of the 15 members of the community who testified at last Thursday night’s public forum supported Congressman Faleomavaega Eni’s proposal to allow U.S. Nationals residing in American Samoa to apply directly from here for U.S. Citizenship.

American Samoa is mourning the death of a prominent traditional leader.

Former senator, associate judge, businessman and author Mailo Tony Atonio passed away at the LBJ hospital, aged 74.

His daughter Virginia said her father had suffered health complications at home last night and was rushed to the hospital.

She said he suffered a heart attack.

Mailo Atonio served as senator for Fagatogo from 2007 to 2010.

Before that he was an associate judge and an Administrator of the High Court.