The Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries has pointed out ongoing challenges faced by constituencies in their bid to access their SAT$1 million district grant.

Laauli said despite some progress, the Government has noticed hurdles in the implementation process, with some constituencies fighting to either change their district committees, remove or change their M.P. or refuse to abide by the Government’s policies for the project.

“There are M.P.s who have been removed from their constituencies and there are constituencies who want to change their M.P.s,” he said in an interview with BluWave TV last week.

“There are also constituencies who want to change their committees because of the way their finances were handled. Other committees were not upright with the handling of their district funds

“There are also other constituencies who have defied the government’s policies and make their own policies. It is not difficult for the government to maintain its policies because this is how the government is able to control the inaccurate and illegal usage of the funds.”

According to the Minister, there are also other constituencies who refused to abide by the Government’s policies and resorted to refusing to accept a funding from the government for the project.

The Minister then urged each constituency to follow the policies of the Government if they want to achieve their development goals, especially using district development project.

In October last year, a matai wrote to the Minister, whose Ministry oversees the $1 million district grant, questioning why their district council office is being built on land allegedly belonging to their M.P.

In a letter dated 14 September 2022, which was written by lawyer Unasa Iuni Sapolu on behalf of her client and Palauli No. 3 matai Autagavaia Upa Seumanufagai, the Minister Leota Laki Sio was asked to halt the building of the district council’s office on land which the matai claimed belongs to the local MP Lagaaiga Tiaituau Tufuga.

Autagavaia claimed in his letter that there has been no agreement within the constituency on where the district committee office will be built and they are worried at public funds being expended on the Member’s personally owned land.

Nonetheless, the Fa’atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) Government’s $1 million district grant is considered a game changer – as the policy enables constituencies to have a direct say in determining what type of development they want public funds to be channelled into in order to better their lives.