The reality in Samoa’s elections

Dear Editor

Re: What are you talking about? 

All your arguments are just repeats of the usual Wendy Wonderful Diatribe Channel. Therefore, I will just refer you to my previous posts for your enlightenment.

It is true that the H.R.P.P wins and wins well most of the time. 

However, it is not because there are 5 H.R.P.P candidates running in the seat vs 1 Opposition candidate. It is because people vote along family and village lines and most H.R.P.P candidates want to be in the H.R.P.P because they keep winning. They would rather be in government than to be in opposition. People vote for opposition candidates for the same family and village reasons. How do you think Aeau Peniamina Leavaiseeta keeps getting voted into parliament at every election to represent Falealupo?

Each district has their own way of doing things. 

Many districts have agreements among their villages that one side of the district will take turns in having “their” candidate take the district seat in parliament. Other districts have ruling titles and villages, which take precedence in political affairs. 

For example, Lotofaga will never vote for anyone else other than Fiame as long as she runs for office. Still yet, other districts don’t have any special traditional arrangements and leave it as an open market. 

You need to remember that villages are just a collection of families genealogically related to each other and a district is made up of villages that are genealogically or traditionally linked to each other. 

Samoa is not like a palagi country where people who don’t know each other live next to each other. Every single person living in a village has their place in the village determined by history. Not by property values.

However, if you have 1 HRPP vs 1 opposition candidate contesting every seat, I guarantee you the H.R.P.P candidate will crush his opponent in 90% of the seats and that will result in a landslide to the H.R.P.P like the one we got in 2016 election.

 

Petelo Suaniu

Samoa Observer

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