Heartbroken and 'Kicked like a ball'

The manner with which the government sacked the former Police Commissioner, Lilomaiava Fou Taioalo, has left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Breaking his long held silence about his termination during an interview with the Weekend Observer, Lilomaiava says he feels like he has been discarded like a piece of trash after 35 years as a public servant.

Speaking from his home at Magiagi, Lilomaiava says he has accepted the decision by Cabinet and he is moving on with his life.

He plans to continue working on his plantation and spend more time with his family, especially his children.

But what has left him heartbroken and bitterly disappointed is the way in which his services were terminated.

“I was only served the letter (of termination) from the Minister after the whole world found out about my termination in the Samoa Observer,” says Lilomaiava.

The letter, he points out, was also in response to a letter he had written to the Minister, asking for an explanation about what was going on.

At 58-years-old, Lilomaiava says he gave his all as a Police Officer.

“I have served in the Police Force for thirty five years,” he says. “It was my first job when I entered as a cadet and I’ve devoted my entire life to my work.”

Lilomaiava says to be discarded like rubbish hurts and pains deeply.

“The way I see it is that once they are done with what they want from you, they just kick you out like a ball and leave you like that,” he says.

“I feel sad, disappointed and I don’t want to work again because this is the only work that God gave me.”

Asked if he would ever consider working for the government again, Lilomaiava says no.

Common courtesy goes a long way, he reminded.

“And right now, I have no interest in working again for the government,” he says. “Who wants to work for them (government) again if this is how they treat public servants?”

Last month, the Commission of Inquiry that investigated the capacity of the Commissioner found that his performance was “below the standard” reasonably expected from someone holding his position. As such, they recommended to Cabinet that he be terminated.

“We conclude that there have been acts and/ or failures to act by Lilomaiava Fou Taioalo amounting to performance that is below the standard that reasonably must be expected from the Commissioner of Police in the performance of his duties and responsibilities,” the report reads.

“We conclude that as reflected in the Report of the Tafaigata Commission of Inquiry and as further explored in this Commission of Inquiry, Lilomaiava Fou Taioalo has behaved in a manner likely to adversely affect the confidence of the community in his ability to perform his role as the Commissioner of Police."

“In view of the foregoing we recommend that Lilomaiava Fou Taioalo no longer serve as Commissioner of Police.”

The Inquiry, headed by Ombudsman Maiava Iulai Toma, flows from “Cabinet’s apparent loss of confidence in Commissioner Lilomaiava” after an initial Inquiry confirmed a host of allegations at Tafa’igata – including corruption and mismanagement of the prisons.

The Inquiry was asked to focus on two issues.

The first was whether Lilomaiava breached his duties as a Commissioner and whether such a breach affected the confidence of the community in the ability of the Commissioner to perform his role.

Lawyer, Diana Roma, represented the Commissioner. She argued that the allegations against her client had not been proven and therefore his services should not be terminated.

“To conclude, the Commission may find at the end of the inquiry that there are short coming in the performance of the Commissioner but our submissions are that the Commissioner offered reasonable explanations towards the matters raised in light of the Tafa’igata report which we submit does not amount to a breach of his duties,” Mrs. Roma argued.

“We also submit that the complaints made during the previous inquiry are not necessarily representative or indicative of the public’s view of the Commissioner ability to perform his duties.

“Let it not be forgotten that there are other duties that were well performed by the Commissioner for the good of the Ministry and the community as a whole.”