Attorney General Talauega Eleasalo Ale has apologized on behalf of the Immigration officers to the people of Samoa and American Samoa for the failure of the Immigration Office to process in a timely manner the arrival of the MV Lady Naomi two weeks ago. The same day, members of the public saw firsthand heated arguments between two government officials, where one was swearing at the other.

This same incident led the chairperson of the House Judicial and Legal Affairs Committee, Rep Vui Florence Saulo, to call on the Attorney General to look into the matter. Talauega said he has yet to respond to the lawmaker’s concerns.

Vui’s concerns addressed in her letter were raised following an article published in Samoa News where passengers were quoted as being very upset with the treatment they were given and compared that treatment to the way animals are treated.

The faipule pointed out to Talauega that this does not reflect a very friendly image of American Samoa and our government.

The AG who recently returned to the island, in an interview with Samoa News on Monday, stated, “The incident with the Lady Naomi on that particular day is unfortunate; our investigation into the matter and discussions with Immigration officers show that there was a miscommunication due to the time of arrival.”

“It’s unfortunate there was a dispute with our Immigration officer and someone from Customs, whom I understand is not usually there. He was there and perhaps he was not familiar with the process. There was a heated conversation and it’s unfortunate that happened, however when the Immigration officers went in to process the boat for clearance they did their job,” said Talauega.

The AG, in his interview with Samoa News, pointed out that Immigration is not the first authority there to clear a boat — and that his officers and Customs are actually the last people to clear the passengers.

(Samoa News understands that in addition to Customs and Immigration, DoH and DPS have clearance measures they enforce.)

“There’s no set time. Sometimes it (the boat) comes in early, sometimes it comes in late. Once we get a phone call from the agent … but sometimes there is a miscommunication... which is why we had the incident that day,” he explained.

Talauega stated that there is “no intention for Immigration officers to force the people coming from Samoa to wait, after a long trip coming over,” adding, “We try our best.”

The AG said that while the incident that day was unfortunate, “let’s not sensationalize it…”

He went on to say, “On behalf of the AG’s office, we apologize to the people of Samoa and American Samoa who may have been inconvenienced on that day.

“The fact of the matter is — we try our best to provide services with the limited resources that we have, and sometimes the timing of those services and provisions are not to everyone’s satisfaction— but we try out best,” the AG stated.

Asked about comments by those from Samoa — who said that they were treated like animals— the AG said there is no intention by his office to treat anyone badly.

“Well of course nobody is treated as such. We don't go out there to treat anyone badly, but there is a process that they have to go through. They (the Lady Naomi passengers) have to be patient as well,” Talauega said.

He pointed out there are laws that need to be enforced for every boat that comes into Port and they need to heed those laws. The AG also said that Immigration officers are expected to treat everyone respectfully “but there’s a law that we have to enforce — and if that’s upsetting the people, that’s too bad.”

BACKGROUND

Samoa News notes the “heated” conversation to which the AG was referring occurred between Supervisor for Immigration Enforcement Division, Maui’a Si’itia and Customs Supervisor Mata’u Keniseli. On the day in question, Maui’a and his crew arrived late at the wharf and were approached by Mata’u, who told the Immigration officer that they were late — and that the public had been waiting for close to 45 minutes.

Maui’a fired back at Keniseli in Samoan, “You don’t tell me how to do my job. I have the authority over my job and I don’t tell you how to do your job.” Maui’a further swore at Keniseli, while Keniseli maintained calm and spoke to Maui’a in a respectful manner.

Following the argument, Maui’a walked away, while Keniseli told him that they shouldn’t have communicated with each other in the way they did, rather they should have sat down as leaders and talked over the issues.

Maui’a fired back, “Don’t say that b***t to me; I have worked for over 35 years, I fully understand the responsibilities of my job.”