When a village doesn’t have good leaders; everyone and everything will be out of control.

So says Dela Savea from the village of Falelauniu.

She is 20-years-old and she is the mother of one child.

She is concerned about the impact of drunk people who cause problems in the villages.

“I love everything in this village except for one thing; the problem of drunk people on our roads destroying the peace for everyone,” Dela said to the Village Voice. 

“They always do this especially during the weekends.

“We may be one village but we are all different people from different families and different villages. 

“That’s why you see; people here think they have the right to do whatever they want.

 “When fights and disputes happen; no one can really stop it because we will always end up getting involved and then end up getting hurt. 

 “That’s why when we face situations like that; we always contact the police because they are the only ones who can put a stop to these fights.

 “But it doesn’t change the fact that it disturbs the peace for all of us here and it’s annoying.” 

Dela said this is not a new issue.

“People act this way because the village doesn’t have governance which means they don’t have any rules for people to act accordingly. 

“So they’re always thinking they can do whatever they want and they can mess up whatever they want because no one has the right to stop them from doing so.

“But I; as a mother I need to stop this. 

“I need help from the government to encourage our village to initiate a village council or governance for the safety of people especially our children.

“I’m a witness to a lot of fights that took place here and the words they throw at each other; it’s not really the language that you want your children to take notes of at such a young age.

“We need governance in our village and we need it immediately and effectively.

“The youth needs to be taught and they need to be controlled so we can all stay safe and in peace.

“We need potential chiefs, we need leaders to take a stand and make this village a better place for everyone in it.”