Dear Editor,

Thank you Moe Lei Sam for raising the issue about our natural resources. 

I also hear stories of sea cucumbers being harvested in the sack loads by a certain businessman and some associates of his and it breaks my heart. 

Sea cucumbers are a delicacy in Asia and they’re paying like a few dollars a sack when I asked a local villager who was doing it from Tafatafa. 

At one point this guy said that the harvest was so big the back of the truck was filled up so they have to drag the extra sacks in, on a local bus. 

They got to Fugalei and was told there is too much already and the price was dropped to almost nothing. Barely enough for the bus fare. 

I’d tried to tell this guy the danger of what they’re doing to the country’s future and he just grinned and looked the other way. 

I know they’re on to it the minute this business guy shows up on his truck flashing his wallet around. I think the M.N.R.E is aware of it because while this guy was talking he’d mentioned people from the government showing up and putting a stop on it. 

This was like 5 or 6 years ago. 

Now that you’ve mentioned it, I’m pretty sure they’re on to it under the radar again. Who’s to blame? Our people? The government for not doing their jobs or the Chinese? 

We have to understand that the Chinese mindset doesn’t care about what we care about. They just take. Whether it destroys the environment or not is not their concern. It’s business to them, not a livelihood. 

So thanks for raising this issue so people could discuss it and at least bring it to public awareness of what we’re loosing as a country and a people. Please MNRE, do your jobs and follow this up.

 Steve