A bank in Samoa has advised the Faatuatua I le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) Party to seek a court order to determine the next course of action for party funds held in a savings account.
The Samoa Observer reports that the Managing Director of the Samoa Commercial Bank, Lemalu Ray Ah Liki, wrote to the party on May 30, 2025, making the bank’s position on the matter clear.
The report says the FAST savings account holds funds raised during the party’s “fundraising world tour.”
It seems the signatories are in disagreement over how the funds should be split, after the party sacked several members since the world tour.
One of the sacked signatories, party treasurer Leatinu’u Wayne So’oialo, is refusing to sign for the release of the funds until they are divided between the sacked members and the remaining FAST leadership, including party chairman La’auli Leuatea Schmidt.
La’auli has told the bank to deposit the funds into his personal account, but the bank declined the request.
The funds were initially raised during the party’s world tour, deposited into a savings account, and was later used to settle a $803,500 overdraft with the Samoa Commercial Bank.
The current balance of the savings account is over $200,000. However, neither faction of the party can access the funds unless the signatories reach an agreement on the next move.
