It is a shocking fall from grace for an electoral official who showed a lot of promise and could have been Samoa’s next electoral commissioner.

Afualo Daryl Mapu, the former assistant electoral commissioner, was jailed for 18 months by the Supreme Court on Thursday.

An article (Former assistant election chief jailed) in the Friday 11 November 2022 edition of the Samoa Observer reported on the ruling handed down by the presiding Justice, her concerns about drug use in Samoa, and the charges of which Afualo was found guilty of and ultimately jailed.

The accused was found guilty of six possession charges namely narcotics; utensils; unlawful weapons; unregistered firearms; unlawful ammunition; and ammunition without permit.

Supreme Court Justice, Tafaoimalo Leilani Tuala-Warren, said during the hearing that the discovery of the Class A narcotic and firearms in Afualo’s family home is aggravating and the uncovering of drug paraphernalia such as the glass pipes led her to infer he is a user of methamphetamine (meth).

“The quantity of methamphetamine found on the accused was not insignificant,” Justice Tuala-Warren said. “The increasing prevalence of this drug in Samoa. The impact on society cannot be understated. 

“In a recent interview by the Deputy Police Commissioner published in the Samoa Observer dated 8th November 2022, she said 'the methamphetamine scourge has been plaguing many Pacific nations and Samoa is no exception'.” 

Furthermore, the Court noted that the defendant being a senior public servant in the Samoa Government is also another aggravating factor. 

On mitigating factors, the Court took into consideration his personal circumstances and his family being severely affected by his sentence. 

The defendant is 39 years of age and is married with two children. He has been an Assistant Electoral Commissioner with the Office of the Electoral Commissioner until he was suspended, is well educated and is a university graduate, who worked his way from being an officer in the O.E.C. to become an assistant electoral commissioner. 

We cannot imagine how devastated his family must be, following his sentencing on Thursday and being taken to the Tanumalala Prison, where he will be behind bars for the next 1 year and 6 months.

As adults we make choices every day of our lives and should be ready to deal with the consequences. As rational beings we are expected to weigh the pros and the cons of our decisions on ourselves and our families before taking that next step, which could change one’s life forever.

Therefore, was the risk of dabbling with hard drugs such as meth and having in your possession a cache of illegal firearms worth the trouble? Was it worth the trouble now that your family loses its breadwinner for the next 18 months? Was it worth the trouble now that you have a criminal conviction next to your name for the rest of your life?

Besides the direct loss of income to the former assistant electoral commissioner’s immediate family, let’s look at the ramifications his 18-months imprisonment would have on his staff and colleagues at the O.E.C.

Justice Tuala-Warren, when handing down her decision last Thursday, said being a senior public servant in the Samoa Government was also an aggravating factor.

So what does that mean in layman’s terms? It means that being a senior public servant in the Samoa Government, the community has higher expectations of you and how you conduct yourself as a senior public official. 

As an assistant electoral commissioner, Afualo had the responsibility of overseeing and conducting free and fair general elections or by-elections in Samoa, and promoting this democratic process at the end of every parliamentary term of the country’s Legislative Assembly.

Looking at the charges that the Police laid against him, he was already in breach of the Public Service Commission’s Code of Conduct, which by extension are offences under the Narcotics Act 1967 that are criminal in nature and will have dire consequences on your tenure as a senior public servant.

At the end of the day, the imprisonment of the former senior public servant not only affects his family but the O.E.C. as well as the Samoa Government, which continues to be on the lookout for role models.

There are higher expectations of our public officials irrespective of position and rank within the public service. At all times the public expects them to work with integrity and demonstrate total commitment to ethical conduct.