Pressure mounts on Cook Islands Deputy PM over Rarotonga water tariff petition

A Rarotonga advocate says that to end the controversial water tariffs introduced last year, their petition only needs the signature of Deputy Prime Minister Albert Nicholas.

Rarotonga’s water authority, To Tatou Vai (TTV), implemented the tariffs in October. Commercial users pay NZD$34 per month for the first 50,000 litres of water, while residential users are billed NZD$17 for the same amount. The government subsidises this by making the first 50,000 litres free.

Joyana Finch and volunteers launched the Keep Our Water Free petition last June, gathering over 3000 signatures, which were presented to the Bills, Petitions, and Papers Committee in March. The committee recommended scrapping the tariffs and removing the requirement for TTV to be financially independent, suggesting that operations be funded from the national budget.

Speaking to Tauraki Rongo on PMN Cook Islands, Finch says the final step lies with Deputy Prime Minister Albert Nicholas, who also oversees the water portfolio at the Ministry of Infrastructure, Cook Islands.

“We've got the signatures of the people, the endorsement of the clerk, the select committee - They had the parliamentary debate [and] no one spoke against the petition, the members of parliament only spoke for the petition,” she says.

“We're basically handing him the pleas of the people, all wrapped up in a bow with the texts, required stamps, just needing his approval on a silver platter.”

Residents voiced their concerns to ABC Pacific, saying they feel “completely ignored.” They argued that the tariffs discourage local farming, which undermines efforts to improve the region’s health.

Apii Timoti, the Water Authority’s chief executive, argues that millions of dollars have already been invested to improve standards and contends that the tariffs will encourage people to value the resource.

Prime Minister Mark Brown claimed that most Rarotongans understood the need for a water tariff. Yet, Finch says their petition signatures represent more than half of the 6200 voters who participated in the 2022 general election in Rarotonga.

Watch Joyana Finch’s full interview below.

‘Commercial and agricultural are domestic’

Nicholas’ response is due by Tuesday, but Finch says it has been difficult to meet with him to discuss concerns about the select committee’s wording in their recommendation.

Although the recommendation states that water tariffs should not be charged, there is a clause in brackets that says “no tariffs, excluding agriculture and commercial”.

Finch says the biggest issue is the lack of clarity, as she questions whether families in the Pacific who sell items like Niu (coconut) from their homes would fall under the commercial category.

“This has not been thought through - If I grow tomatoes outside my house, am I paying agricultural rates? What would have worked in a city does not work here in Rarotonga [because] the commercial and agricultural sectors are domestic.

“A lot of people are growing and selling from their homes because the cost of living is high and the wages are low.”

Deputy PM Albert Nicholas. Photo/RNZ/RNZI/Flo Syme-Buchanan

Keeping a promise

She says it is “almost poetic” that Deputy PM Nicholas has the final say since he promised to change laws to prevent exploitation during last year's three public consultations.

“That was his promise. At the time, I don't think he had any idea that we were about to launch a petition and that we would dedicate 10 months to chasing him up on that. But he did make that promise, and at the meeting, I prompted him to fulfil that at the next parliamentary sitting.

“He responded, ‘No, that's too soon, these things take time’. Lo and behold, the petition team has worked very hard… and we've ticked all the boxes. Now we're presenting it to him, and all he has to do is say ‘yes’.

“I personally am hoping that he rises to the occasion, that he proves that he shows the people that he can keep his promise, that his words are not empty, that he is a man for the people.”

Keep Our Water Free Petition organisers, from left, Joyana Finch, Metua Vakapora, and Justine Flanagan. Photo/Cook Islands News