Kiribati election: New candidate tells why voters should support her

Tarawa, August 19, 2024 (PMN) — Timauli, Tilay and Titaboa – The health, peace and prosperity of the people of Kiribati are why Ruth Cross Kwansing is running for a seat in Parliament.

The 45-year-old independent candidate is one of 18 women out of 114 candidates running in the national election.

Guan Xin, a business consultant and climate advocate, said this is her first time in politics, and it makes her very nervous.

“I couldn’t relax at all. I couldn’t sleep,” she told Pacific Morning William Treat.

The first round of voting took place last Wednesday, with the candidate who received more than 50% of the votes being declared the winner.

In the race for South Tarawa, the country’s largest constituency, Guansing emerged second among a record 22 candidates, behind Birimaka Tekenene.

She received more than 1,000 votes and advanced to a second round of voting on Monday to decide who will form a government.

She said her campaign was based on three concepts, “three blessings from our ancestors— Timauli, Tilay and Titaboawhich means health, peace and prosperity”.

“I did really well in my first go-in. I finished second in the first round, which included all the sitting officials in the government.

“I think seven candidates got more than 1,000 votes. I still don’t have confidence, no, I don’t know if anyone will be in it because anything can happen.

“You’ve seen everybody else drop out. I think all those votes will be redistributed today. It’s all been very positive and I’ve got a ton of support.

“If you look at social media, there was a lot of encouragement. But even as second place, I still didn’t have the confidence, I just thought, OK, it’s possible.”

In this election, which could have far-reaching consequences, the people of Kiribati face a turbulent period of strained relations with Pacific neighbors, tensions with traditional allies, and an ongoing constitutional crisis.

Local investigative reporter Rimon Rimon said many major issues will affect voters in this election.

Rimon also told Tritt that those issues include soaring costs of living, health care, welfare benefits and climate change.

He said that while there is optimism in the air, voters are concerned about the state of the economy.

Kiribati is located approximately 4700 kilometres north of New Zealand and has a population of just over 130,000.

The low-lying Micronesian atolls are among the islands hardest hit by climate crises such as rising sea levels.

Guansing said prices in Kiribati remain high because imports are shipped to Fiji before arriving in the capital, Tarawa.

“Everything I hope to achieve for our constituents and ultimately our country will be achieved under these flags and blessings.

“I also want to focus on the health sector, improve the well-being of the people, move towards peace. It’s all about education, making sure that domestic violence issues are properly addressed, increasing support for economic empowerment, things like that.

“The Taboa Plan is really about self-reliance and being able to lift the people of Kiribati out of poverty so that we can be more self-sufficient.”

This is the second election held in Kiribati since it broke away from Taiwan and turned to China in September 2019.

Taiwan has previously lost six diplomatic allies to Beijing, including the Solomon Islands, which is due to sign a security agreement with China in 2022.

China’s influence in Kiribati is becoming increasingly evident as current President Taneti Maamau seeks to extend his term in parliament.

Maamau, the driving force behind Kiribati’s foreign policy shift from Taipei to Beijing, retained his parliamentary seat by a landslide.

Results released by the Ministry of Culture and Interior showed that Mama’u won the Onotoa seat with about 83% of the vote. Rimon believes the prospect of Mama’u’s government returning to power is “very likely.”

The United States and its allies have expressed concern about Beijing’s actions in the Indo-Pacific region, but Washington is keeping a close eye on Tarawa in Kiribati because of its proximity to the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Chinese police patrol the streets of Tarawa, and Rimon said the government has not explained what these foreign security personnel are doing in the country.

Full results are expected on Tuesday… PACNEWS

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