Last Thursday afternoon, at a relative’s wedding celebration at the Orator Hotel, we found an unexpected yet delightful solution to a modern man-made crisis.
With the electricity in our area cut off since 8 a.m., we used coconut leaf fans to keep ourselves cool in the heat of the day!
In these times, everyone must now consider carrying a large coconut leaf fan to keep us cool inside our hot fales and to provide much needed shade outside in the sun.
This multi-purpose eco-friendly solution captures the simplicity of our ancestors’ lifestyle, long before the arrival of foreign technology and the sophisticated machinery we now rely on, like generators.
We can actually thank the Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi Government for taking us back in time to experience how our forefathers lived nearly 3,000 years ago.
This has taught us the importance of empowering our grandparents to pass on the invaluable skill of weaving coconut fans to our grandchildren.
It is a wonderful opportunity to preserve a piece of our culture and build bonds between generations.
I urge the FAST Government to revive an old traditional skill, similar to the fantastic failed agricultural initiative by the great La’auli, called “Talomua.”
This new initiative will replace stable crops like taro with coconut fans, which are great souvenirs for tourists and a smart and sustainable solution in times of continuing electricity blackouts.
The use of coconut leaf fans reduces our reliance on imported generators that are often too complex to maintain and eases the pressure on the workers hired to operate them.
Most importantly, it frees up government funds to allow FAST Party members to go dancing and fundraising in Alaska, which has outdoor air conditioning and snowy landscape that is ideal for skiing.
In addition to coconut leaf fans, our ancestors used copra oil in coconut shell containers, with a piece of tapa sticking out to serve as a wick, creating a lamp!
This was Samoa’s version of the palagi candles of today – an effective and sustainable light source that costs nothing.
I offer this advice to the Minister of Blackouts, on alternative solutions to our reliance on electricity, completely free of charge.
Once these solutions become a huge success, he should be conferred the honorary title of Minister of the Coconut Fans.
He will be applauded by all his adoring fans, which have been shrinking by the day.
Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi
Leader of HRPP