Another Starter For The Spc Stakes

Mr. Fred Betham, Western Samoan Member of Parliament and for eight years Minister foi Finance until the Mataafa Gov ernment lost support at the last elections, has been nominated by Western Samoa as next secretary general of the South Pacific Com mission.

If his nomination succeeds, he would take the post from another Samoan, Afioga Misimoa, who died in office in February. The West Samoan Government takes the view that Samoa should be entitled to nominate a man to “finish the term”, and nobody is likely to seriously argue against this. Especially as Mr. Betham is a competent and popular admin istrator, well-known in the Pacific.

And he is an Islander, and that status has developed into a prere quisite for the secretary-general’s post since Misimoa’s appointment.

Australia has put forward a Papuan, Gala Oala-Rarua, As

sistant Ministerial Member for the P-NG Treasury, as her nomina tion, and other names mentioned are Pago Pago-born Peter Cole man, who is former Governor of American Samoa and now Deputy High Commissioner of the US Trust Territory of Micronesia, and J. C. Guerrero, a former Gov ernor of Guam. It is understood, however, that neither of these men is interested in the post.

Fred Betham, at the end of April, appeared The Most Likely to Succeed.

Born in Apia, he was 56 in April. He is married to Olive, daughter of the celebrated O. F.

Nelson. He has the OBE.

A decision on the next sec retary-general will be made in Noumea in September, unless member governments can agree in the interim. Fiji, although now independent, has not yet been admitted to the SPC as a member government.