Every passing year has its own story to tell and it normally revolves around events of lasting impact on peoples’ lives.
Social and economic issues dominate everyday living.
We have just lived 12 months or 360 days that are no different from the same span of time we do every other year.
What is different are events we as the public reflect on.
What these reflections decide in the end is whether it was a good or bad year. There will be speculations looking ahead if the good or the bad will carry over to the next year coming up.
Why? How? When? Who? Where…..?
Acrimony shattered the unity of our national politics since 2021.
We are just past 2022 and now striding assertively into 2023 with this dark ominous cloud still clinging numbingly around our head.
Life does go on and it is fair to admit it is just the way it is. Is it?
We can continue to either grope our way in the dark, angry cloud that has shut harmony out of our lives or fix the damn problem.
We have borne this political burden for quite a while now thank Heavens we are still at peace rather than in pieces. Full credit to us.
We have remained remarkably calm and stable for many reasons.
Our pulpit preachers will claim it is the miracle of God. Loud Amens from the ‘flock of the faithful’ will definitely echo from that.
The traditional ‘matai’ or chiefly culture will want rightful recognition of their role. Why not?
Of equal claim also or should be is economic stability.
Politics aside, Samoa was in a bad place with the economy going back to the measles epidemic and then the COVID pandemic and its global reach.
Climate change and war deteriorated further the stability of world finances the ripple effects washed onto the national economy.
The tourism industry was the hardest hit to the point where staff were laid off and hotels closed. Services related to the industry took a serious economic dip.
War in Europe forced up fuel prices adding more heavy strains onto the local economy as it plodded along from 2021 into 2022.
Remittances, noticeably from seasonal workers on contract in Australia and New Zealand tried to ease in some relief.
This was when and where the Samoan National Provident Fund, SNPF, emerged as the cavalry riding to the rescue with just over $110m to be disbursed via the hands of the Contributors straight into the economy.
The FUND was in celebration of its Golden Jubilee of establishment and the ‘cash out’ highlighted the 50th anniversary achievement.
The money was rolled out in two separate disbursements firstly $42.35m tala followed by $66.7m tala.
It was also organised in several payments over the course of the year with the last handouts last December.
What was quite noteworthy during the golden celebrations was “the landmark achievement of surpassing 1 billion tala net-assets for the first time – making SNPF the first institution in Samoa to do so.”
The SNPF General Manager, Pauli Prince Suhren and his dedicated staff were the cavalry riding to the rescue of the national economy badly in need of stimulation.
The payouts they made were real.
Contributors were able to buy real food for hungry families, pumped petrol into empty tanks, donate to the tax- free pockets of ‘faifeau’ to buy Jesus’s love and much more.
The General Manager and his staff made everything real with hard work, the success turned the SNPF into a life saver for Samoa and Samoans in times of desperate need.
The services Pauli and his staff undertook came through for the country and deserves our vote of gratitude.
The high level of commitment and dedication to responsibilities makes them the Newsline Samoa choice of :
PERSON OF THE YEAR 2022
.