Pacific Games Council threatens legal action against Tonga

Transcript

ANDREW MINOGUE: There's a process now that obviously through the parliament has to be gone through. It's budget time here in Tonga - the parliament is sitting throughout this month to pass the budget for the next financial year and in preparation of the budget the Pacific Games is in there as expenditures for the coming year. Quite how they deal with that we're not sure but it was certainly part of the budget, as the finance minister previously and the current one have said to us appropriations are there in the system to deliver the Games. So it's disappointing to know that the funds are there but the government of the day doesn't want to allocate them to the Games as per their responsibilities under the contract.

VINNIE WYLIE: Was there an explanation from the Prime Minister as to his change of mind, in a sense that a few months ago in parliament he quite clearly reaffirmed Tonga was committed to the Games and obviously his statements of the last couple of weeks make it very clear that their view is now the opposite?

AM: Not really. I mean we offered to go through the budget figures that they had - we've done a lot of work on the games budget through the organising committee and we've got our estimates on the cost of the games. We're not aware of the figures that the government is using and we know that they've talked about a report from 2013, which has been superseded by a number of other reports that show the positive economic growth and development to the country of hosting the games but the PM and the two ministers in support of him really didn't want to go into detail of the budget and the line items and the costs - they said their mind is made up and they're moving on.

VW: The next step is the PGC is going to seek legal advice about formally terminating the host agreement and seeking damages for breach of contract - and I guess you're going to have to find a new host?

AM: That's right, so all of those steps are in train now. We've met a lawyer here and will start those proceedings fairly quickly. We want to follow the rules. Sports people and sports organisations always like to follow the rules and we have rules under our contract, that we have with the Tongan government and TASANOC for these Games, around how the contract is to be terminated in the event that it has to be. (The Tonga) government hasn't respected that process but we want to because it's our event and it's our product and we want to follow the rules...in the meantime we will be ramping up our efforts to go out to the other member countries and call for expressions of interest once we get through this month, but we have said to the Tongan Olympic Committee today and also to the media, the Prime Minister may have closed the door to negotiations but in good faith we said we'd give the country a month to sort out its issues and at the end of the month if there has been some sort of change or reversal we're open to that. While we are going to take steps to move forward the Tongan people should know that it's in their hands now. If they want the Games then they have to petition the government or whatever it is they have to do to try and reverse the decision.