14 Feb 2014

Vanuatu government advised to enact law for proceeds of passports sales

2:52 pm on 14 February 2014

The manager of the scheme to sell Vanuatu passports says he thinks the government should commit itself in law to distribute the revenue to the people.

John Stevens Tougon, from the Vanuatu Financial Services Commission, says the statutory body recommended the government to pass a law regarding the spending of the more than 98 million US dollars expected to be made from the first 500 applicants.

He says he has travelled and spoken to locals who want to see the money at the grassroots level and he agrees with them, but the government's choice was to let budget advisors make decisions about spending.

"We can't really push on that. All we can do is probably start the CIIP, make some money for the government and then probably a few months later try and convince the government to sort of open up for the law to come into effect and so people in the rural areas can benefit from it."

John Stevens Tougon.