Tonga

A massive clean up is under way across Samoa and American Samoa after they bore the brunt of the cyclone at the weekend.

Some parts of Samoa are still underwater as emergency teams work to restore power and running water to thousands of households.

Schools have been closed and there are raised fears about sanitation and the spread of mosquito-borne dengue fever.

The cyclone is now around 450 kilometres east of Tongatapu and moving towards the island.

The cyclone tore through Samoa and American Samoa causing major damage on both islands.

The cyclone was upgraded to a category three last night as it passed Niue, but it's now making its way towards Tonga and could possibly become a category four.

Weather reports said the cyclone would be close to Niue as it headed towards Tonga but the system shifted overnight and instead curved around Niue.

Opposition MP Terry Coe said Niue was lucky to have escaped Gita's fury.

Pohiva Tu'ionetoa has been in Australia on medical leave for over three weeks and is not expected to return to Tonga until at least the end of the month.

Reports have been circulating around the kingdom and over the internet that Mr Tu'ionetoa had been dismissed for health reasons.

Mr Pohiva has denied the reports and Mr Tu'ionetoa has attributed them to what he calls "opposition forces".

Pita Taufatofua emerged from the tunnel covered in his trademark body oil and wearing a grass skirt, sandals and a huge smile as he led the Tongan delegation around the arena.

"I won't freeze. I am from Tonga. We sailed across the Pacific. This is nothing," Taufatofua said.

The Oceania gold medallist in taekwondo made global headlines in 2016 with a shirtless entrance as the country's flagbearer at the Rio Olympics.

The good news for his admirers is that he returned for the Winter Olympics, having switched to cross country ski-ing.

Having caused widespread flooding and damage in Samoa and American Samoa as a category two storm, Gita had veered southeast and was forecast to pass close to Niue's east coast overnight.

The Fiji Meteorological Service, which is responsible for warnings in the region, said Gita continued to intensify, and would likely do so for the coming day.

On current forecasts, it is expected to pass very close to the island's east coast, possibly as a category three storm.

Technical officer in the food division of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forests, Pelenitina Vao was awarded a training scholarship, which involved attending a two week course in Christchurch.

The scholarship scheme allows employed individuals to gain knowledge and skills that will contribute to the social and economic development of Tonga.

The programme included insight into food safety, hygiene protocols, food inspection, auditing and legislation.

The Prime Minister told Kaniva News last evening he was surprised when he was told by his personal secretary he received contacts from people asking to confirm whether it was true or not Tu’i’onetoa has been fired.

The Minister of Police Māteni Tapueluelu, who was in Auckland on his way to a meeting in Hong Kong,  said he received text messages from staff at Parliament asking him if he was aware of anything about the Minister of Finance.

“There are few people who have nothing good to do,” Pōhiva said.

Judge Charles Cato convicted Sione ‘Otutoa, 24, also known as Sione ‘Uli, on 26 January 2017 after ‘Otutoa offered to take the 19-year-old girl to her home during a “drink up” with other friends in Kolofo’ou on 27 February, 2013.

‘Otutoa made the offer after the victim asked another person at the party to take her home.

But instead of driving her home ‘Otutoa took the victim to a place which was described in the judicial document as “a dark area” and at one stage he “forced her to the ground.”

Dr Eka Buadromo said the Ministry of Health has procured the new centrifuge from New Zealand after its own 40-year-old device broke down just as dengue fever started to escalate in Tonga at the end of last year.

She said the device was used to concentrate platelets so they can be transfused into patients with uncontrolled bleeding as a result of dengue fever.

Dr Buadromo said she was hoping the centrifuge will be flown from Auckland to Tonga in the next two or three days so that more effective treatment will be available.

The airline's owner Tevita Palu said it will fly its SAAB 340 which seats thirty passengers from Tongatapu to Faleolo Airport outside Apia, via Vavau, in Tonga's northern island group.

Real Tonga Airlines has signed a codeshare agreement with Samoa Airways so the two airlines can share the same flight.

Tevita Palu said he was looking forward to working hand in hand with Samoa Airways, to develop direct air transportation between the two nations and to support tourism growth in the region.