by Ednal Palmer, Georgina Maka’a, and Ronald Toito’ona
Three months after his appointment as interim head of the Telecommunications Commission of Solomon Islands (TCSI) in February 2021, Calvin Ziru flew to Munda in Western Province for one of his first official engagements.
This meeting with members of TCSI’s Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) was scheduled to be held at Agnes Lodge, Munda’s premier accommodation facility.
As the interim head of TCSI, Ziru, a lawyer by training, took with him SBD$21,650 for accommodation and SBD$15,000 in imprest funds to cover other costs of the meeting.
However, according to a scathing report sighted by In-depth Solomons on Ziru’s financial management from 2021 to 2023, he never used those funds for the meeting.
Instead, TCSI was forced to pay a separate invoice of SBD$35,395, which Agnes Lodge billed for accommodation, beverages, and meals, the report, produced by TCSI office, showed.
No records were ever produced of the funds and imprest that Ziru had with him when he travelled for that engagement.
This incident marked the beginning of a series of cases – ranging from questionable awarding of contracts to outright illegal spending involving over SBD$1 million – for which Ziru now stands accused.
Ziru’s Spending Spree
After serving in senior roles at several private organizations and state institutions, Ziru was appointed interim Commissioner of TCSI in February 2021.
He became the Commissioner a year later, in February 2022, when he signed a five-year contract extending his tenure to 2027.
As the Commissioner, he was responsible for managing TCSI and ensuring it functions well.
“Being head of TCSI, Ziru has the authority to request or order payments from the organization’s finances,” a source familiar with this case told In-depth Solomons.
Questionable Contracts
And so five months into his new role as interim commissioner, Ziru created and entered into a contract with a Fijian national, Meli Nadavu Moce, for the development of TCSI’s Dashboard system.
At the time, Moce was residing in Honiara with his wife, who was employed by the Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), and did not have a work permit.
According to the sighted report, the Dashboard system contract was never tendered.
Moce, the report stated, was paid a total of SBD$180,000 for the contract. However, there was no evidence of the existence of the Dashboard system. Except for one payment, all other payments for the purported project were made in cash and collected by Ziru on Moce’s behalf.
When contacted, Moce confirmed to In-depth Solomons that he had been engaged for the job after Ziru invited him to submit an expression of interest and his CV.
“My engagement with TCSI was based on their need for a telecommunications data dashboard,” Moce said.
“I helped develop their first policy on this tool and then created the tool itself. This is a critical tool for a regulator.”
Furthermore, he stated that since his engagement was on a consulting basis, he did not require a work permit.
Second Contract
A year later, in July 2022, when he was the Commissioner of TCSI, Ziru awarded a second contract to another Fijian national, Jone Raqauqau, a consultant working for the UNDP office in Honiara at the time.
The SBD$160,000 contract was for Raqauqau to produce a Corporate Plan for TCSI.
But according to the sighted report, the contract was never tendered, and there was no evidence that Raqauqau had produced the Corporate Plan.
As with the first contract, some payments were made in cash and collected by Ziru on behalf of Raqauqau.
A spokesman for UNDP office in Honiara said their records show Raqauqau’s consultancy was already over when TCSI engaged him.
Contacted for comments, Raqauqau confirmed his engagement with TCSI but declined to answer questions put to him in relation to the allegations raised in the report.
Private Trips and Meals
On 15 October 2021, the report stated that Ziru took his children on a private trip to his home in Munda, Western Province, traveling by air. They stayed at Agnes Lodge.
The report indicated that Ziru charged the cost of the trip to TCSI, totaling SBD$41,632.
A month later, on 22 November 2021, Ziru took another private trip to Munda, again staying at Agnes Lodge. The trip, which cost SBD$30,000, was charged to TCSI to cover accommodation, beverages, and meals.
On 1 November 2023, TCSI reportedly paid SBD$26,981 for Ziru’s family meals at a Coffee Bar in Honiara.
Medical Bills
Under his contract, Ziru was not entitled to overseas medical travel, although he had a medical allowance of SBD$25,000 per annum.
By April 2023, he had already exhausted his annual allowance locally.
However, the report showed that on 26 April 2023, Ziru instructed the payment of SBD$75,580 for his medical trip to Fiji and an additional SBD$12,033 for airfare, totaling SBD$87,613—funds to which he was not entitled.
On 6 October 2023, he instructed another payment of SBD$35,000 for overseas medical travel. The report stated that Ziru was issued a cash cheque for the amount, but he never left the country.
Three weeks later, on 1 November 2023, TCSI paid him another SBD$85,590 for medical travel costs, the report showed.
Boxing Club
According to the sighted report, Ziru owns and runs a boxing club. The report does not name the club, but records from Company Haus indicate he registered CKZB Boxing Promotions on 17 May 2023.
Between 14 April 2023, and 1 November 2023, Ziru allegedly spent SBD$250,200 of TCSI funds to support his club and other boxing promotional activities.
These included a SBD$10,200 airfare for the Fijian military commander to watch boxing in Honiara and a SBD$150,000 sponsorship to the Solomon Islands Amateur Boxing Association (SIABA), which was paid via cash cheque and collected by Ziru.
Additionally, Ziru reportedly used TCSI funds to purchase a SBD$35,000 television screen for his privately hosted boxing tournament.
Hostings
On three occasions, according to the report, Ziru took out SBD$33,000 from TCSI to host separate events.
The first occurred on 29 July 2022 when he got a cash cheque of SBD$20,000 to host the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Telecommunications and Aviation Moses
But according to the report, there was no evidence of the meeting taking place. Virivolomo could not be reached for comments.
Ziru made two further requests for funds to host other events and got another SBD$13,000, but according to the report, he provided no evidence of those events.
Legal Fees
On 31 July 2023, TCSI paid SBD$12,000 in legal service fee to Law Corporation, a law firm the report said was owned by Ziru’s wife. Company Haus records show he was also a shareholder in the company.
Hotel Invoice
Then came a hotel invoice.
According to the report, TCSI received an invoice totalling $133,597 from Heritage Park Hotel for expenses incurred at the hotel in 2023.
The report said TCSI paid off SBD$66,798 of the total bill on 4 August 2023.
This payment covered SBD$26,384 for boxing hosting function, $31,429.90 for family accommodation and meals, and the remaining (around SBD$8,985) for Ziru’s private hostings.
The report however, stated that there was no evidence to show that these are official TCSI-related events.
Further Allegations
Beyond these questionable expenditures, the report stated that Ziru took salary advances totaling SBD$141,000 without clear plans for repayment.
He also allegedly used TCSI funds to purchase a portable sawmill worth SBD$150,000.
Furthermore, the report claimed that since his appointment in 2021, Ziru rarely showed up for work.
“His best attendance rate is once a week. He only comes in for stakeholder meetings such as with TEC or when he needs money.”
Of TCSI’s three office vehicles, two were allegedly held by Ziru, leaving only one for office use.
Ziru Prefers Not to Comment
Ziru declined to comment on the allegations raised when In-depth Solomons contacted him.
He said he’d prefer to see the formal process of addressing the report happen first before he could make comments.
Ziru’s unprecedented spending reportedly baffled staff of TCSI, who out of concern for the organisation’s finances decided to bring the matter to the attention of TEC.
TEC, which plays a governance oversight role of the TCSI, is chaired by Philip Kanairara, Chairman of the Law Reform Commission.
Its two other members are Dr Luke Forau, Governor of the Central Bank of Solomon Islands (CBSI), and Namoi Kaluae, Chairlady of the Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI).
“When Ziru’s actions were brought to TEC’s attention, they referred the allegations to the Ministry of Communications and Aviation (MCA) in June last year,” a source familiar with this case told In-depth Solomons.
Under the Telecommunications Act (2009), allegations of such nature are required to be investigated by an independent and impartial person.
The disciplinary process starts with the Minister calling for a TEC meeting and inform the TEC and the Commissioner about his consideration for suspension or removal of the Commissioner due to the allegations.
The TEC will then appoint an independent and impartial person who will enquire into the allegations.
The TEC is to advice the Minister of whether to remove or retain the Commissioner on the basis of the report prepared by the independent and impartial person.
But according to our source, since the report was submitted to the MCA in June last year, Minister Fredrick Koloqeto did virtually nothing to address the serious allegations raised in the report.
“Kologeto has been basically sitting on the report for the last seven months. This is unbelievable,” our source said.
“Shows he is not serious in addressing allegations of financial mismanagement.”
After waiting on the minister for two months, TEC sent a request in August last year for a meeting with Minister Kologeto on the allegations. In-depth Solomons understand that the requested meeting did not take place.
In-depth Solomons sent numerous requests to Koloqeto and his Permanent Secretary Alwyn Danitofea for an interview, but they declined.
However, Kologeto told Island Sun newspaper he’s awaiting directives from his Permanent Secretary and legal advice from the Attorney General Chambers on the matter.
He further stated that the report about the allegations came at the end of last year, 2024.
However, In-depth Solomons had confirmed with reliable sources, that the report was shared with the MCA in June last year.
Kologeto dismissed claims he’s taking side with Ziru by refusing to attend to the report.
Meanwhile, Ziru remains on TCSI’s payroll as the allegations raised against him hang in the air.
What is TCSI?
TCSI is the government agency responsible for the economic and technical management of the telecommunications sector in the Solomon Islands. It was established in 2009 under the Telecommunications Act (2009).
To ensure its independence, TCSI operates outside the government’s financial system. Its revenue comes from service license fees, radio spectrum application fees, and other fees within the telecommunications sector. TCSI’s last financial report in 2019 showed the organization operated on an annual budget of SBD$9.8 million.
The Telecommunications Act also provides for the establishment of TEC, which plays an oversight role in TCSI’s financial administration.
TEC also plays the role of reviewing and approving the Commission’s budgets.