Journal 10/2/1987
P1 In serious decline
First it was Keith Smith’s house, back when he was manager of Mieco. Then it served for a number years as Mieco Club, a bar with a homey South Seas atmosphere. For a while the Blue Shirts ran their interesting chipper operation out of the back. And even Stony, the famous Fijian who used to have a column in the Journal, used to live on the second floor. The high point of the building was its service as a Mormon Church. But now, alas, the old building has fallen sadly into decrepit old age and may go the way of the old Coconut Rendezvous Club, the BOQ, and other buildings edged out by the new order.
P1 Budget FY1988
The newly passed budget for the Republic of the Marshall Islands allocates $70,322,100 for expenditure during the period October 1, 1987 to September 30, 1988.
P2 Houston signs up for US Navy
Ever since hearing the Village People sing “In the Navy” at Uncle Sam’s Disco, Houston Mito has wanted to sign up. Sign up he did last Friday after traveling to Honolulu to do so. Houston, a 1987 graduate of MIHS, is the first of several Marshallese men and women who will be departing the islands over the next several months to serve in the US Armed Forces. Wena Anta is the second Marshallese to join the US Navy when he left the capital Tuesday for Honolulu to be sworn in.
Journal 10/1/1999
P1 A. Samoa ‘flavor’ for Ebeye’s KAJUR
American Samoa’s power company won the bid for managing KAJUR, Ebeye’s power and water utility, and a contract is expected to be signed this Friday. Private Sector Unit coordinator Bobby Muller confirmed Wednesday that Cabinet had held a special meeting earlier in the week to approve the bid process from the PSU that ranked the American Samoa Power Association over one submitted by the Marshalls Energy Company.
Journal 10/8/2010
P2 Gov’t. audit has twice the problems over ’08
Auditors found nearly double the number of accountability problems in the RMI government’s fiscal year 2009 audit compared to the previous year, according to the latest Deloitte audit provided to the Nitijela. In FY2008, auditors identified just six “findings” (problems) — the lowest number ever that continued a several year reduction by the Ministry of Finance in audit problems. But the recent FY2009 audit, the number of findings jumped up to 11, with five of these described as “material weaknesses” — serious problems.
P14 28 die from smoking
Smoking is a big issue in the Marshall Islands. Between 2005 and 2007, 28 deaths were attributed to tobacco. Lung cancer has consistently been near the top of the list for cancer deaths, with a high of 11 deaths coming from lung cancer in 2005.
P19 Tusi’s ‘Kobe’ shot wins Shootout
With no time remaining on the clock, Tusi Alik’s three-point shot swished through the basket, giving Team Mili a thrilling come-from-behind victory over defending champion Kaben Meto in the Bank of Marshall Islands 11th Ralik Ratak Shootout Invitational Basketball Tournament last Friday at the ECC. The opening of the championship game had more than 1,000 fans packed into the national gymnasium wondering if Kaben Meto was going to steamroll Mili after the defending champions jumped out to a 22-4 early lead. But Mili’s offensive machine closed the gap. With five seconds to go in the game, the score was tied and Mili had the ball. The pass went to Tusi in the corner. He lofted a high, arching three-point attempt under heavy defensive pressure. As the crowd held its collective breath, the clock clicked to zero, the buzzer sounded, and the ball fell through the net giving Mili its first Ralik Ratak Shootout championship, 72-69. Tusi was mobbed by teammates and the gym erupted, as fans spilled onto the floor.