People

Mr George Moody-Stuart, 45, has been appointed chief executive of the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation. A graduate of Cambridge University, he is on a three-year contract. After graduation Mr Moody-Stuart worked in the sugar industry in St Kitts and Antigua and then became general manager and resident director for the Booker McConnell group of sugar estates in Kenya. He has worked on sugar feasibility studies in Indonesia, Africa, South America and the Caribbean. He will take over from Mr Gwynfor Bowen-Jones on March 1.

Dr Semisi Sofe Maiai, a resident physician in Auckland, recently had the title of Le Papaliitele conferred on him by the Western Samoa Head of State, Malietoa Tanumafili 11. The ceremony was performed at Poutoa, Sapapalii, Savaii. Dr Maiai maintains two clinics in Auckland. Most of his patients are Polynesians, with many Samoans among them.

Mr Luke Sela has forsaken the comparative calm of the Papua New Guinea Office of Information, where he has been assistant director, for the hurly-burly of daily journalism. He recently became chief-of-staff of the PNG Post-Courier. He has been in journalism for about 10 years, the last five with the PNG public service. He was the first Papua New Guinean to become news editor of a major media organisation when he was appointed news editor of the Government Broadcasting Service in 1973. He was the first press officer in the PNG Consulate in Sydney, when it opened in 1974.

Mr Hose Mina, 35, is the first Papua New Guinean serving as a magistrate to graduate in law. In 1975, he took seven months leave to finish the course, which he started in 1973, but was recalled to the bench at Goroka. While serving there he was able to continue his studies by correspondence. In 1976 he was able to study full-time at university, complete the course, and pass in the 10 subjects he took. He is now senior district court magistrate in Port Moresby Court. He

has been appointed magistrate, grade four, which is equivalent to a stipendiary magistrate.

Cr Joape Rokosoi, 35, has been elected Mayor of Suva, beating the in cumbent, Cr Len Usher, 69, in an election in which there were traces of bitterness. Cr Rokosoi polled seven votes to Cr Usher’s four. Seven National Federation Party coun cillors abstained in the vote. Crs Rokosoi and Usher are both Alliance Party councillors. The Alliance Party had earlier decided that Cr Rokosoi should be the mayor in accordance with a gentleman’s agreement of 1972 that the mayoralty should rotate an nually on a racial basis. Cr Usher did not go along with this idea and offered to serve another year. He had previously been mayor for three years in the late 19605. He worked hard throughout 1976 to put the council on a better financial and administrative footing.

Mr Francis Bugotu, 39, has been appointed to one of the top bureaucratic jobs in the Solomon Islands as Secretary to the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers. He succeeded Mr G. Wyn Jones who has retired, and has since been appointed Governor of Montserrat in the West Indies. Mr Bugotu has wide experience in the public service. Before taking up his present position he was Permanent Secretary for Education. After educa tion at Pawa Primary School, and then in New Zealand, he was a teacher for a number of years, and then an inspector of schools for the Church of Melanesia. He was a nominated member of the first Legislative Council, and the first Solomon Islander to take one of the diplomatic training courses arranged by the Australian Government.

Dr John Sandover, vice-chancellor of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology at Lae, left PNG in early December, two months before he was due to go.

Dr Sandover, an Australian, denied that he had been sacked from his position. He said he was leaving because the university council had asked him if he would vacate his post earlier than he intended in the interests of localisation.

He said that the incoming acting vice-chancellor, Mr Matthias Tigilai, a Papua New Guinean, would make a

“magnificient” head of the institution, who would be able to ‘’wield more influence than I could”.

Kautu Tenaua, a Gilbertese, went to England in November, 1972, with Mr Brian Savage, who was retur ning home after service as mathematics master at the King George V School, Bikenibeu. He studied at Westwood High School, Staffordshire, at Mr Savage’s ex pense, where his mentor was also a teacher. Kautu returned home recent ly with three A level passes in chemistry, physics and biology, and now hopes to study medicine at the Fiji School of Medicine on a govern ment scholarship. He said on his return that he would have liked to stay with Mr Savage and his wife, but he was also “very Gilbertese” and wanted to work for his country.

Mr D. G. Harper, 46, will succeed Mr Paul Cotton as New Zealand High Commissioner in Western Samoa in February. Mr Harper has served in a number of overseas posts and is at present in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Cotton, when hereturnsto New Zealand will rejoin the staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mr James Vaukei, 34, a Solomon Islander, has become acting general manager of his country’s Ports Authority, which he joined as a trainee clerk in 1959. He is experienc ed in all aspects of the authority’s work, and also has overseas ex perience. He was with the Port of Fremantle Authority on operational attachment, during which he became warehouse superintendent. In 1975, he spent a month in Singapore at tached to the Port Authority there, and nine months at the University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology, where he was awarded a Diploma in Port and Shipping Ad ministration. He also attended a six week seminar on senior management at the University of the South Pacific.

Mr Vaukei became deputy manager of the Solomons Ports Authority in 1973.

A new arrival at Tarawa recently was a sea captain from England who has been lent for about four months to the marine division at Betio. His name Captain Kidd. A departure from Tarawa some time ago was ex patriate civil servant Dick Turpin. So far, Robin Hood hasn’t turned up.