It has been three months and there is still no decision on the status of Samoa Tourism Authority chief executive officer Toleafoa Pativaine Petaia-Tevita. She was suspended in February, and three months have passed since the unusual decision.

Never in the history of the public service have chief executive officers been suspended for unsatisfactory performance and then given a week to respond while on suspension. The former Chairperson for STA, Tauiliili Alise Stunnenberg, said the board was going through a standard procedure for all government employees under review. She said the suspension was issued due to the unsatisfactory performance of the STA boss, but did not elaborate on the matter.

Most top officials do not get their contracts renewed if their performance after a review is unsatisfactory. They just serve their one term. How often is there a performance review? Is it done annually or towards the end of the tenure?

If it was a standard procedure, then is it practised across the board in all government departments? A performance review is a marvellous way to ensure that the top officials are on the path to deliver the targets that have been set, and there needs to be more of these. All top officials in all government departments need to go through this process annually.

All human resources teams must undertake this process in the public service to improve service delivery. Employee reviews aren’t only an opportunity to reflect on past performance—they can help optimise employee performance in the future. This can lead to better outcomes.

Back to the STA CEO, her situation remains perplexing, as there are no definite answers that have been provided. Until now, people do not know if she is employed by the STA, and she is still getting paid while suspended. If she is still on the payroll, then this would have been one of the longest paid leaves in the public service.

All government procedures need to be uniform. Why are we seeing different procedures in different ministries? Different ministries and departments may have different roles, but their employment procedures must be the same. They all come under the Public Service Commission and all sign similar contracts with similar work policies and guidelines. It was rather out of the ordinary when the STA CEO was sent home. What could be the delay in confirming her status as still employed or not?

Acting Chairman for the STA Board, Tuiataga Nathan Bucknall, was reluctant to respond when contacted for a follow-up on their performance review of the suspended Chief Executive Officer. “I don’t have anything to say now, but shortly there will be comments in the statement,” he said. Asked when the statement would be released, Tuiataga replied that once he approves. “Next week, just have to go through the due process,” he added.

STA remains the key marketing body for promoting tourism and is behind the drive to get more visitors to our shores. Since we are talking about the STA, it is a good time to ask if there has been an increase in tourists. The visitor arrivals are high, but most of these are Samoans returning to visit their families or attend functions. Has Samoa been able to break into a new market to attract more visitors? Have we signed deals with airlines and hotels promoting package deals? Is our tourism still dependent on Samoans overseas?

There is a need to engage in a manner that will become the Samoan way, something that will ensure that our visitors keep returning to our shores. That should be the target.

Tourism creates important multiplier effects on other sectors of the economy. Three levels of impact can be estimated. The direct effects are the economic impacts derived directly from changes in tourist spending as it occurs in the tourism-related establishments. The indirect effects occur because of the increased purchases of tourism-related businesses. The direct and indirect effects will have accrued the local income in the form of wages, salaries, profits and rent. The money spent within the local economy will generate additional economic impacts called the induced effect.

Hopefully, we will get a definite answer on the status of the CEO and tourism next week. Have a great weekend.