By Staff Writer
When the general elections come around in April 2021 the Election Commissioner Faimalomatumua Mathew Lemisio and his staff should be settled comfortably inside their new Mulinu’u Office.
Construction is finally underway after the $3.5m project has been sitting in the pipeline in late 2013, early 2014.
The OEC office tried to operate from an old colonial building used for administration work by the Lands and Titles Court.
The OEC was forced to leave after it was declared unsafe when the creaking floor on the front porch collapsed under the weight of voters coming in to register.
The new site is now built where hearings were held on matters of the Land and Titles Court next to the old unsafe building they were forced to vacate.
“We are excited about the fact that OEC will finally have a permanent home since its existence in 2005,” a happy and relieved Electoral Commissioner Faimalomatumua said.
“This Office had been moving around from place to place and it’s becoming a real challenge especially in between elections.
“But now that the Government has approved this project to finally go head, we are looking forward to moving in hopefully before the 2021 General Elections.”
The OEC Office is now set up on the Development Bank of Samoa multi-storey building in the centre of Apia after a process of relocations started in Mulinu’u and into Apia.
The Electoral Commissioner is expected to make the final exodus to a permanent home before the end of the year or thereabouts.