Sua Rimoni Ah Chong

Su'a Rimoni Ah Chong is a Samoan politician and former Controller and Chief Auditor of Samoa. He was the leader of the Samoa Party.[1] As the Controller and Chief Auditor, Su'a Rimoni's efforts against government corruption in Samoa earned him international notability.

From 1992 to 1995 he refused to authorise illegal payments to Cabinet Ministers as Controller and Chief Auditor. In 1994 he tabled an Annual Report to Parliament that revealed wide-scale corruption in the Human Rights Protection Party (HRPP) government under Tofilau Eti Alesana. The report implicated six out of 13 ministers in improper activities and payments. The government's response was to set up a Commission of Inquiry to discredit the Report.

The Commission looked not into the irregularities, but into the Chief Auditor himself. Included among the committee's members were several individuals criticised in his report.

In July 1995 The government suspended Sua. He then sued the government, stating that under the constitution the Controller and Chief Auditor is only answerable to Parliament. As such the HRPP changed the Constitution making the position a Cabinet appointment and sacking Su'a in the process.

Previously the position of Controller and Chief Auditor (a Constitutional Officer) was like that of the Chief Justice, an appointment for life. Being responsible to parliament the CCA could only be removed from office by Parliament. Following the amendment the position is a Cabinet appointment for a term of two years and can be sacked by the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

The whole scandal brought Samoa into international scrutiny and questioned its commitment to good governance, as well as democracy and responsible government.

For his efforts, Su'a Rimoni was awarded the Transparency International's Integrity Awards in May 2003. The annual integrity awards recognize the courage of individuals and organizations fighting corruption.

Su'a Rimoni is of Chinese-Samoan heritage.[2]

References

  1. ↑ "Land Reform Bill not Samoan, says Samoa Party". Radio New Zealand International. 30 April 2008. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
  2. ↑ Pacific Islands Monthly: PIM., published by Pacific Publications., 2000, pg 25
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