Tonga

Pacific representation at the tournament has been cut from five teams to four.

PNG, Fiji and Samoa, as the highest ranked sides, are already included in the draw, and it will be either Cook Islands or Tonga who make up the Pacific quartet.

Charles Carlson, president of the Cook Islands Rugby League, says their day of destiny will be in October.

Plans to establish the committees were prioritised by the Ministry of Internal Affairs following an assessment of Ha’apai after Tropical Cyclone Ian, which found more vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, the elderly, women and children often the worst affected by disasters.

Ensuring the active participation and integration of vulnerable groups in community-based protection committees aims to improve services available and enable the Government to better understand the root causes of vulnerabilities.

The multi-million pa’anga project funded by a Chinese grant to the Government of Tonga was originally set to start in November last year but was deferred to August this year after the Coronation celebrations.

A press statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said work on clearing the site has begun. Trees were completely removed from the Railway Road side of the park opposite Parliament House.

No mention was made of the fate of Tongan War Memorial and the iconic band stand located at Pangai Si’i.

Matangi Tonga reports the Office of the Attorney General has filed a civil action in the Supreme Court to declare Mr Tapueluelu's candidacy unlawful because he had an allegedly outstanding debt when he was nominated for last year's general election.

The acting Attorney General and Director of Public Prosecutions 'Aminiasi Kefu claims when Mr Tapueluelu submitted his nomination as a candidate he had an outstanding legal cost of approximately US$6,800 dollars, which he should have paid to Clive Edwards after a defamation case.

The Flying Fijians have moved up one place to ninth after beating Manu Samoa in last week's final.

Tonga's three-match winning streak to end the tournament has also seen them jump from 12th into the top ten, with Samoa slipping back two places to 11th.

In other notable moves, Ireland has climbed to their highest ever position of second after beating Wales in a World Cup warm-up match over the weekend.

That, coupled with South Africa's shock home defeat to Argentina was enough for the Irish to move up, with the Springboks dropping three places to fifth.

As a result, Lord Tu'ivakano adjourned Parliament because of a lack of quorum. Only 12 Members of Parliament were present in Chambers.

Lord Tu'ivakano said a letter from the Office of the Prime Minister saying that Cabinet members will be ready to attend today's Parliament session. This morning, a second letter was received saying, all Cabinet ministers will not be present in Parliament until August 13. 

Lord Tu'ivakano said the Royal Agricultural Show only required the presence of the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries and Food. 

He arrived last Friday to attend the Defence Club 100th Anniversary in Suva and took time out to play golf.

“This is a fantastic competition and I’m glad to be invited here,” he said.

“Golf is just a hobby, but I’m privilege to be here.

“It’s a great weather to play golf, it’s nice and cool.

“Back at home we only have a nine-hole course so I hope to go back and develop the sport and take up the sport seriously.”

Also part of the competition was Vodafone Fijian 7s head coach Ben Ryan and captain Osea Kolinisau.

Fiji will firstly host Tonga on 19 August at Govind Park in Ba, before playing American Samoa at Prince Charles Park in Nadi on 27 August.

The two visitors will compete when Oceania FIFA World Cup qualifying commences on 31 August in Tonga. One spot will be up for grabs in Stage 2 over the course of the five-day tournament, which also features Cook Islands and Samoa.

Fiji coach Carlos Buzzetti has named a strong 23-man squad for the matches including Wellington Phoenix striker Roy Krishna, powerful attacker Osea Vakatalesau and U-20 captain Jale Dreloa.

Tonga have the next week and half off following a busy Pacific Nations Cup.

Tonga finished with wins against Canada, USA and Japan following a narrow opening defeat by Fiji.

High Performance Manager, Peter Harding expects performances to keep improving.

"We know the quality of our group and we know that if we have enough time together we can win matches. This has just basically confirmed what we've long believed. We need time together, we need matches together and we go alright if we get those two aspects of it correct".

Fakakakai Primary School was demolished by Cyclone Ian in 2014 and as a result students had to use a local church for temporary classrooms.

The five classrooms, toilet facilities and two staff quarters cost around 410-thousand US dollars.

The reconstruction was jointly funded by New Zealand and the Asian Development Bank.