Ba Town Floods

Rohit Chand, Ba

You listen to light rain

like rice thrown

on the roof

being drizzle drops

falling bit by bit as you hear

each one’s small strike

All of a sudden, they get faster

their tone join together

into a loud cry

a worrying tune, the flexible roar

of a water giant, whose form

no one can predict

This is an attack on my home town

as rain falls in for days

pounding, thrashing

banging the earth in vain

sinking the town

in flood stream

Drops are tiny insects as they fall

strike the ground

and when the sea and land

cannot absorb, soak water

came flooding without warning

entering various houses and shops

Debris all shattered everywhere

three floods in nine days

more downpour media warns

all finally prayed

a disaster to stop

time to pick up and clean

Flood debate

Simon Hazelman, Savusavu

In a supplementary question SODELPA MP Niko Nawaikula claimed that every time the rain falls, all rivers are flooded.

The Minister for Waterways, Mahendra Reddy, responded by saying “come on, not all rivers get flooded”.

My response to both is, it all depends on how hard and long it rains!

The amount of rain we got all over Fiji over the past several weeks sure made every river and stream flood!

Whether we have a Minister for Wa­terways or a Minister for Floods, when nature unleashes is fury, no person and no country be able to stop it!

If neither of you are in awe of Mother Nature, then there’s something definitely wrong with the both of you!

Air Terminal Services

Amenatave Yaconisau, Delainavesi

I’m surprised the Employment Relations Tribunal of the Ministry of Employment and Industrial Relations has dismissed an application by ATS for the company to be declared an essential services.

All companies dealing with entry should be declared essential whether they are marine or air transportation.

Golden girl

Sukha Singh, Labasa

I wonder if the girl who won a weightlift­ing gold medal will be treated the same as Assistant Minister for Sports Illiesa Delana and the Fiji sevens team for win­ning the Gold at the Olympics.

It would be a good incentive to have wel­come ceremony for this Commonwealth team.

Fiji Netball losses

Tomasi Boginiso, Nasinu

International teams we used to beat be­fore are now beating us by big margins.

We have been winless in the last God knows how many tournaments.

To my knowledge getting foreign coaches are part of an attempt to get the team either to be consistent or improve in their standard, but for Vicki it seems to be declining in all aspects of the games.

The big question is how is the selection of the Fiji team being done?

Has Vicki visited other parts of Fiji?

The Commonwealth Games or the world tournaments are not where you sent development teams.

The reason of having four years lapse for each tournament is so that within the time frame the development and prepara­tion for teams are done.

Whatever Vicki has been paid, she doesn’t really deserve it.

Maybe trying a local coach with the same pay would probably the best idea for the time being.

Fiji netball should start developing netball at this stage, have more local tournaments organised, involve schools and interdistrict tournaments to select capable and outstanding players.

There used to be a lot of sponsors and incentives in the past years.

What has happened to them?

Netball used to supported and cheered along with rugby not long ago, but what­ever has made it has changed it and it needs to be revived.

There is always potential, ability, cour­age and strength everywhere in Fiji.

So for the netball selectors and coaches get out their get the girls that would make Fiji greater again.

Yaqona price

Tukai Lagonilakeba, Nadi

I personally feel and hope that the high price of yaqona around the country will positively lower the demand from those who consume this murky water so they may live a healthy life to give their kidney and liver some breathing space to recuperate.

I believe the massive price increase will bring some changes in their health and lifestyle should they abstain and will come with good quality family time for those addicted Fijian consumers.

They are bound to save hundreds of good valuable dollars where they can put it to good use for their respective Families, but I am amazed as to why the SODELPA opposition member Ro Kini­viliame Kiliraki will want to bring this time waster personal issue to Parliament when there are many other very impor­tant pressing national issues at hand to be immediately dealt with by the August House.

Mr Kiliraki should make it his business and be seen negotiating directly with the farmers and middlemen if he is really concerned because that is a private busi­ness dealing, which have absolutely got nothing to do with Parliament.

I used to buy one kilogram of yaqona to last me a fortnight at home, but it is two years now since Category 5 severe Tropical Cyclone Winston where I have completely stopped and have converted to buying a carton of Fiji Gold cans to last me two weeks and I find it very refreshing and way much cheaper than the $150 per kg of yaqona sold here in Nadi.

On a positive note I feel the current price of kava should remain for a long time to benefit the farmers because it will all go back to our GDP.

Delicacies such as mangrove and ocean crabs are $250 a bundle here in Nadi, quality grade fish and lobster are all very expensive, either buy it or get out in the ocean and catch your own because yaqona farming and fishing are both very tough jobs and cannot be compared with the luxury of Parliament with the easy $50k salary you receive annually plus perks as a backbencher annually for contributing such non-important useless issues.

It is a very simple fact that if you feel it is way too expensive, Mr Kiliraki should stop buying it for a start or learn to plant 10 yaqona tree in his own backyard in­stead of those flower gardens mum plants around the house compound because it might assist bring the price down.

I bet my bottom dollar yaqona thieving will now be prevalent all around Fiji for the black market and that will automati­cally contribute to the increase in price and the shortage.

The SODELPA MP should be promoting healthy lifestyle living and affordable basic food items instead of abetting the unnecessary abuse of yaqona that results in ill health and laziness, again he has got his priority wrong, very shameful indeed.

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