A former Human Rights Protection Party (H.R.P.P.) candidate says he witnessed government documents being dumped at the Tafaigata landfill. And he told the FAST deputy leader, La’auli Leuatea Schmidt, about the dumping.
Afoa Fetulima Nonu told Samoa Observer he was working for a subcontractor that was directed to dig a hole at Tafaigata to bury documents from a number of ministries.
For the past two weeks while working at the landfill he has seen Government trucks unloading documents that were burnt in the area.
Afoa, said that last Thursday he saw two trucks from a Government entity offloading black plastic bags filled with official documents.
“I was suspicious seeing all of these documents being dumped at Tafaigata to be destroyed,” he said..
“The previous week [two weeks ago] a Government vehicle brought documents that were burnt there and I saw it.
“On Thursday last week I had just finished digging the hole and two trucks from [Ministry of] Revenue brought in plastic bags with a lot of documents…they dumped it in the hole and instructed me to bury it.”
According to Afoa the officials didn’t leave the site until they saw him dumping dirt to bury the paperwork.
When he was sure they had gone, he picked up his phone and contacted the FAST deputy leader La’auli.
“The burning and burying of these documents are suspicious,” said Afoa.
“I understand that there are laws that protect official documents from being destroyed for a certain period in case it is needed for auditing but these are recent paperwork.”
Afoa said after that day he was called in to meet with government officials to discuss the retrieving of documents from the landfill and told that it is illegal to remove the rubbish.
But he did not turn up to the meetings and decided it was best to resign from the company he was working for.
“I am not afraid to speak up about what I saw and in my own eyes this is not right, especially the timing of destroying the documents when there is instability in our Government.”
In a press statement issued on Thursday afternoon, the Ministry of Customs and Revenue said, “The confidential waste bags (photos of which were) publicly posted and shared on Facebook, was part of the confidential rubbish that was sent to be disposed of at the Tafaigata landfill on Thursday 10th June 2021.
“Given the seriousness of the act to remove our ‘confidential rubbish’ illegally from the disposal site, we have now lodged a complaint to the Ministry of Police and an investigation is now ongoing.”
Photo:Samoa Global News
