TBAS to Open Monday, Pulu Says History Will Repeat Itself

centennial-cleaning-crew

All’s set for the grand opening of the Territorial Bank of American Samoa on Monday on the ground floor of the Centennial Building where Bank of Hawaii used to be.

Nana’s Company has been sprucing up the three story building owned by the Retirement Fund with workers hosing it down and apply a fresh coat of paint.

Even the parking lot has got a good washing down.

A ribbon cutting and  blessing is  slated for 10 am Monday at the front of the new bank and the plan is to open the doors to the general public around noon. Centennial Cleaning

Following statements by the Board of Directors of the government bank in the Senate earlier this week, Pago Pago High Chief Pulu Ae Ae Jr, expressed his dissatisfaction with the use of public funds on a venture that the government has had a very bad record in…finance.

Making it clear that the opinions he’s expressing are his own as a taxpayer and member of the community, said he’s got a whole file of government officials and their relatives whose Development Bank of American Samoa loans were written off.

And he’s afraid the same thing will happen with TBAS.

He says all the statements he heard from the Senate hearing this week were just to get support for the bank.

And he’s disappointed that Senators did not look out for the interests of the people whose money is being used for the bank.

Pulu went as far as saying that most of the senators who are supporting the bank have had DBAS loans written off in the past.

And, said Pulu, the same leaders will be the ones who will get big loans.

“Mark my words, he said, “history will repeat itself.

Pulu said he would not complain if the governor and the bank board put up their own money for the bank.

But he said this is the people’s money.

KHJ News has reported in the past about DBAS loans which were written off.

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