Trust Estates Contributes

To Samoa's Finances

It was news in Western Sam in September when the Trust I tates Corporation ended its fifl year by making a grant of £S3O,U to the Western Samoan governmes A year ago it was the non-appe;s ance of an expected grant £8126,000) from the Corporate (just then recently renamed fn “NZ Reparation Estates”, as handed over by NZ to the Samoan that started the Territory’s fins: cial crisis.

When the Estates belonged New Zealand the whole of t profits were handed over to Samoan Government for benefits, the Samoan people. When tiff were transferred to Samoan conth they became a separate entity ttt had to stand on its own feet. T Corporation then needed its proo

ifor its own reserves—particularly in its first year of operations.

All this is explained at much length in the Corporation’s first annual report and balance sheet, for the year ending March 31, 1958.

Progress and profitable results of the first year’s trading are reported, although profits were down on the mrevious year. (Net profits for 1957- )8 were £870,720).

Various reasons are given for the falling off of profits in the current year, in comparison with previous years when the estates were under tfZ control. Mostly it is attributed ;o a fall in the price of cocoa and ;he fact that the Corporation’s joconut plantations are now 60 per ;ent. very much over-age (planted 10 or more years ago). Ravages of ‘hinoceros beetle are also consider ible.

A vigorous programme of re canting and rehabilitation be :omes urgently necessary, says the ’eport, and so also was the neces sity to revalue all assets of the Corporation. A Special Committee mdertook this task and recon sideration of the value of lands, luildings and other assets resulted n a reduction of over £200,000 in he total value of fixed assets.

ndignant Over

Fhe Machine

Many NG Highlands residents eacted indignantly to the treat ment of John MacGregor by Port Moresby officialdom in September.

MacGregor, and Frederic Ander on, two former Administration ifficers from the Goilala district f Papua, were in the news last ear when the Administration had hem charged following allegations f ill-treatment of natives.

MacGregor was acquitted, but mderson was sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment—a sentence rhich was considerably reduced, o six weeks, on appeal to the High Jourt of Australia. Both young men fere —and are—held in high re ard in the Territory, MacGregor left the Administra tes employ last year and got a 3b as a traffic officer at Banz with ribbes Sepik Airways. His wife orked as a teacher there. But he r as recently retrenched, because of general cut down of staff, and ras given a job in the Highlands s an Administration road super iser.

However, two weeks later he was ismissed from that position—ap arently on instructions from Port

loresby.

As individuals, P-NG Admini tration officials are generally ighly regarded, but the machine self can operate in a way that oes the service no credit.

Then Father Dwyer, speaking with strong feeling, submitted a plan under which primary education could be brought to 400,000 native children within 15 years, if the output of native teachers over that period could be raised from 300 to 1,000 per annum.

Father Dwyer said that, to achieve this, there must be closer co-operation between Administration and Missions, and Administration must be prepared to maintain at boarding-schools, at Teachers Training Centres, the necessary number of teacher trainees.

There seems to be complete unanimity, among the Territory’s thmking men, on the need for establishing simple English as a common language, as an essential

preliminary to the creation in P-NG of a united nation of medium standard-of-living people.

There is similar unanimity in the condemnation of the Administra tion’s practice of sending native youths to secondary schools in Australia —a policy little short of a social crime. (“Give them all the secondary education they can take —but let the secondary schools be in the Territory!”) On record and performances in relation to education —which is the keystone of the P-NG administra tive structure —the Territory needs either a new Minister who is less of a theorist, or a new Admini strator who will not be over shadowed and pushed around by

the Czars of Canberra.-

Rwr.