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Senator says important issues call for a new Constitutional Convention

Rendering of the proposed new fono building.
The last Con-Con was in 2010 and it is mandated for every 10 years
fili@samoanews.com

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Sen. Soliai Tuipine Fuimaono hopes that the new Administration will call a Constitutional Convention this year, as there was none last year and that’s probably due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Soliai brought up the Constitutional Convention when speaking earlier this week during a Senate committee hearing on the bill to establish the American Samoa Law Review Commission, saying that the Constitutional Convention is held every 10-years and the last one was held 10-years ago.

However, he said a convention was due to be held last year but it didn’t happen and it’s probably due to the pandemic. He points out that the creation of a law review commission is timely to review all current laws and make recommendation of new laws or revised ones to be presented during a constitutional convention this year.

Soliai recalled that the last Convention was held in 2010, where more than a dozen proposed amendments to the Constitution were approved and presented to voters during election that year. However, voters rejected all the proposed changes, which were put under one question for a vote of “yes” or “no”.

(Samoa News points out that Soliai was chief election officer at the time, and he had publicly stated that he disagreed with how the proposed amendments to the constitution were put on the ballot — which came from the Governor’s Office at the time.)

When asked yesterday, Soliai told Samoa News that he hopes for a Constitutional Convention this year, since there was none last year. He said there are many important issues that need to be addressed and put to the public to vote on via a new referendum.

Former Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga was asked during a news conference in December 2017 about calling a constitution convention — following many public inquiries. He told reporters that he recommended to Fono leaders to utilize the legislative process for any proposed changes, as this is the most effective way.

“It’s a much cheaper way and it's a process that will give the public a chance to provide testimonies, during public hearings,” he said, and noted that if a convention is called, convention delegates would probably be more keen on getting their allowances, while only a few people would make the decisions. (The constitution allows delegates to receive per diems set by law.)

Going through the legislative process, the Fono “should conduct public hearings” to not only get public comments but explain any proposed amendment, Lolo said.

He gave the same response when the same issue of a constitutional convention came up in 2019.