A woman who previously worked at Tonga Power company is expected to face a criminal trial following her arrest over embezzlement allegations, local media reports said.
Tupou Seluini Tahilanu, 29, from Sopu ‘o Tāufa dishonestly made off with TOP$47,521.00, the reports allegedly said.
The accused was working at Tonga’s sole electricity supplier’s office in Tofoa from February to April 2022 when the allegations emerged.
A person by the Facebook name Pou BJames Tahilanu told Kaniva News the source who leaked the news was investigated.
She described the source’s actions in English as ‘illegal’ and it is allegedly misleading the public.
“It’s almost a year now I have moved on with my new job”, Tahilanu, the messenger, said.
She denied the news and asked to pull down the story as it affected her family.
In Tongan she said: “kole fakamolemole atu pe e lava nai ke tukuhifo post koia kataki pee ,he oku uesia hoku ki famili pea moe tokotaha’ ni he feaveaki holo ikai ke mooni”.
The news came amid electricity consumers’ ongoing complaints on social media about the electricity costs which they deemed it as ‘extremely expensive’.
There were also questions over what appears to be customers being asked to pay for the government’s electricity subsidy. As we previously reported extra reversal charges appeared on power bill invoices for consumers to pay had been made after the government apparently failed to pay its promised subsidy to Tonga Power.
This followed with the Ministry of Finance saying last month the government continued paying the subsidy to Tonga Power.
