It was bound to happen. Churchmen, village chiefs and a large section of ordinary Solomon Islanders have been frustrated by it over the years. They feel large community grants paid to their communities via their MPs, have little, if at all, to show for it on the ground.

In the three years to the end of last year, thousands of voters who travelled to Honiara seeking answers from their MPs were literally turned by none other than their very own MPs.

Frustrated, many have begun writing to local newspapers. Others have hit the airwaves calling on their MP to account for so much money their MP had received on their behalf –money they only heard about it in the media.

It seems the crusade for accountability and transparency will only gather momentum and intensity as Solomon Islands edges closer to June 2010 when the country’s voters are expected to go to the poll.

While disgruntled Solomon Islanders turn to the media for support, a group of village chiefs from Solomon Islands’ Western Province has gone one step further.

In September last year, representatives of Joint Tsunami Disaster Committees of Lokuru, Ughele and Rendova Harbour on Rendova Island travelled to Honiara in search of help to investigate millions of dollars given out in the name of their communities, but have not been given to them.

Five chiefs representing the committees have signed a three-page letter to the Chairman of the country’s Leadership Code Commission. Islands Business has obtained a copy of the letter dated 12 September 2008.

The letter was copied to the Auditor-General, the Head of Police Criminal Investigation Division in Honiara as well as to Transparency International [Solomon Islands].

It pulled no punches.

The chiefs spelt out their intention in no uncertain term. In bold capital letters it said: “Request to authorise investigation into all funds granted to the Member of Parliament for South New Georgia, Rendova and Tetepare Constituency [inclusive of the Tsunami Rehabilitation Project Funds]”. Only the bracketed addendum was in bold but lower case.

 “We, the undersigned and acting on behalf of all the tsunami victims on the island of Rendova write this letter and addressed it to you for the purpose of requesting your kind assistance and cooperation through…”

The five representatives are Hukari Navo for Ughele Tsunami Disaster Committee and voters, Mr. Allan Job for the Lokuru [SDA] Tsunami Disaster Committee and voters, Neboth Bero who represented Rano Tsunami Disaster Committee and voters, Gordon Suri, for Rendova Harbour Disaster Committee and voters and Mathias Dally for Lokuru [United Church] Tsunami Disaster Committee and voters.

Their letter outlined nine specific points they want from authorities. First, they want relevant authorities to “scrutinise, audit, and when appropriate to investigate if there are sufficient reasons for suspicion or doubt relating to the use, disbursement and acquittals of all the funds captioned above and are further classified in [2.0] above.

 “Scrutinising, auditing and investigating all funds granted or paid to the Member of Parliament for the South New Georgia, Rendova and Tetepare Constituency for the political term [2001–2005/2006 to current and inclusive of all project funds.

“For example, the Rural Constituency Development Fund [RCDF], the Rural Livelihood Fund, the Millennium Fund, Project funds from the Ministry of Agriculture, funds allocated for Tsunami Rehabilitation Project [already paid to the MP] as well as the Thirtieth Independence Anniversary Celebration Fund disbursed to him in June/July 2008,” the letter said.

The chiefs also requested field audits in their constituency “for the purpose of verifying actual projects being funded to individuals or communities or to anyone who were purported to have received funds from the MP for various purposes and by checking these against actual acquittal records submitted to the Ministry of Finance or the Ministry of Provincial Government by the MP”.

They also want their MP’s private businesses or those owned by his associates to be investigated for “possible evidences of diversion of constituency funds into short-term “roll-over-for-profit” schemes which include the manufacture of water tanks, roofing iron as well as all other procurements of various descriptions and for whatever purposes.

 “Furthermore, to investigate whether the MP has direct interest in any of the business ventures from which the materials had been manufactured or procured”.

The letter it seems left no stones unturned. For example, the chiefs want authorities to investigate whether funds earmarked and allocated for special projects had been diverted to finance other things for which such funds were not intended for originally. They also want to know whether such diversion was done with or without “the awareness and consent of the funder as in the case of donor-funded projects”.

They also want their MP’s bank account[s] to be checked “to determine whether these have any relativity to any of the projects or funds entrusted to him for and on behalf of the constituency”.

As if this was not enough, the chiefs are also demanding that when necessary, “to subpoena individuals, institutions and government departments to avail and provide all relevant and applicable information to enhance the investigation process”.

The chiefs want what they described as “a close circuit” report which would be kept by a lawyer of their choice. Only stakeholders will have access to the document.

Findings in the report will be the weapon the constituents will use “to initiate and institute any legal proceedings against the MP if there are sufficient grounds/evidences in the said report to warrant such action”.