Leadership clash

By Chris Peteru

Cabinet confidentially did

n’t stop one Samoan cab inet minister from losing it publicly at his col leagues when an official visit to the United Kingdom crashed landed back home. Moreover, the bickering and clenched smiles between rebel Health Minister Misa Retzlaff and Deputy Prime Minister Tuilaepa Malielegaoi signalled the opening valley in a lead ership battle for the Human Rights Protection Party, now in its fourth straight term of office.

Questions about who takes charge once ailing Prime Minister Tofilau Eti Alesana waves goodbye, came up again when the 73 year old leader went down with a leg infection (sources say it was more serious) during the September Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Scotland.

It wasn’t the first time. Four years earlier at the Cyprus CHOGM, the prime minis ter, who wears a pacemaker, was hospi talised with prostate problems.

Speculation that Alesana could call it a day gave Samoans the spectacle many had long hoped to see - the acerbic Malielegaoi and the peoples champion Retzlaff trying to outdo each other in public.

Soon after the prime minister landed home from Scotland, Retzlaff was off on a 15 day visit to the UK - he maintains he had been given the go ahead by cabinet at least twice. He only got as far as room 551 at Auckland’s Sheraton Hotel before a fax from foreign secretary Aiono Mose Su’a, arrived ordering the minister to return via a cabinet directive because the visit had not been cleared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Fuming, Retzlaff responded by faxing strongly worded letters to both the prime minister and Malielegaoi when final approval was given saying the call “was not made with a clean heart of righteous ness”. The letters leaked to the Samoa Observer plus media in New Zealand, sug gested the torpedoed trip was instigated by

Malielegaoi to make Retzlaff look like a loser. He slammed cabinet’s reasoning say ing that the fact that foreign affairs had to rubber stamp every ministerial visit, was a fallacy with no binding legislation under the Foreign Affairs Act.

“Quite clearly this is an attempt to embarrass me. It’s highly malicious, embarrassing and totally uncalled for in terms of Samoan relations with the UK (who were covering the minister’s expens es),” he said in the letter. “You may already have informed the British Government that you no longer have confidence in me as a

cabinet minister. “Maybe they have taken offence that foreign affairs was not asked by the British government. But I have been to China twice, the United States and New Zealand and the invitations have always come directly to me.”

The British Consul’s press secretary in New Zealand, Chris Shute, said they “were shocked and disappointed especially as it was cancelled at the last minute.” In Apia six days later a cabinet meeting was called to discuss the mess that had now created nationwide interest. Large numbers of Retzlaff supporters were hoping he would resign on principle and form his own party.

The country held its breath.

“As I await the cabinet meeting at 11 am today, I am in a reflective mood. The prayers have been offered. I am in a con templative mode,” he wrote in an open let ter to the public. During the five hour cab

inet meeting the prime minister gave him two alternatives - apologise to cabinet or look for a new job. He took the first option.

By doing so Retzlaff’s “what a guy” reputation for accountability, honesty and integrity faded overnight - like being dropped in a tub of bleach leaving only the colours of a political opportunist.

Having been on top for 15 years, big egos are abound throughout the Alesana administration. In the case of Malielegaoi and Retzlaff they are roughly elephant size It is said the two men are unable to meet face to face because their heads would never fit in the same room. -The only child of a wealthy merchant family, Retzlaff went on to become a lawyer and millionaire businessman. He first ran in the 1991 election as a candidate for the Samoa National Democratic Party.

On election night the membership ended abruptly. Realising the SNDP was going to get whipped yet again, Retzlaff switched camps. For his efforts, the HRPP handed him the important agricultural port folio, and now health in his second cabinet term.

Through it all he emerged as arguably the country’s most popular politician hav ing twice polled as preferred prime minis ter. Seen as open, hardworking and honest, he pulled out all the stops to project that profile with the media.

Over the years Retzlaff received sup port from the influential Samoa Observer who have trumpeted him as a Kennedy type leader of the future. The backslapping arrangement between the politician and the muck raking paper has long been a sore point with the government which views it as little more than poorly written rubbish.

Contrasting Retzlaff’s user friendly poli

tics and charisma, Malielegaoi who also holds the finance portfolio is a compelling study of a public relations disaster. Widely held as conceited he is one of the kind.

Or as he recently announced on nation al television, while acting prime minister: “Don’t worry Moses and the apostles are here”. Bom into a poor family his story has been one of struggle. In between selling

brooms on Apia’s streets as a youngster after school to support his family, Malielegaoi, talented enough, gained an outstanding scholarship to New Zealand where he acquired a Masters Degree in Commerce.

Like Retzlaff, Malielegaoi was intro duced to politic care of the SNDP, where he served as a one time finance secretary before discovering that economically and politically they did not agree on much. His place in Samoan history is assured having turned the islands mismanaged finances into something resembling a go forward economy for the first time since indepen dence. Tainting that achievement is an ongoing refusal to publicly audit treasury accounts for the last eight years “because we do internal audits”.

Perhaps sensing the disadvantage of having the profile of Mike Tyson taking a liking to your sister, days after the fracas with Retzlaff, Malielegaoi, as government spokesperson started calling official press conferences, the first since 1995. Although three types of cream cake were served, the diatribe remained the same with Malielegaoi making the observation that the Samoa Observer reporter was ugly.

In a head to head presidential style bal lot Retzlaff would walk in easily as the new prime minister. But the row has been a real set back to those plans, and damaged his credibility, after going for the big hay maker on Malielegaoi, but instead almost decapitating himself. Having taken a pounding the he needs to steel himself to the fact that the job will not be given to him because he’s right, or he is perceived as a good buy.

Malielegaoi survives knowing in cabi net and caucus he is the man with the num bers, the influence and the power to give ministers their overseas trips, get members of parliament on the select committee they want and still kick butt when the occasion calls.

The moral of the story was provided by Alesana, following Retzlaff’s apology to his cabinet colleagues, and brief press state ments issued by him saying the matter was closed. Alesana told Samoa Newslinei’Tm going to wait until the country is stable politically.

“I have no intention to resign. I had thought about it before for health reasons, but now I am fit as a fiddle.”

Which is a lot better off than Retzlaff for betraying cabinets one rule of political longevity. Hunt as a pack. ■