10 Dec 2015

Chief Secretary in Tonga under fire from media

8:25 am on 10 December 2015

The Prime Minister's Office and the Chief Secretary in Tonga are being criticised for lacking transparency and good governance.

A number of Tongan media outlets have expressed concern about the lack of cooperation they receive from the Chief Secretary and others at the office.

They say enquiries often go unanswered and former adviser and publisher Kalafi Moala says he noticed while working with the government that incorrect information has been distributed via the office.

Mr Moala says the government hasn't lived up to the expectations of a pro-democracy government.

"This is the government that promised transparency from the first day and this is the government that says we want to talk to media, we want media to talk to us. We want to be transparent. We adhere to good governance and it is this government that has become far less transparent than previous governments."

Prime Minister's office, Tonga

Prime Minister's office, Tonga Photo: Supplied