Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Members of the Senate Select Investigative Committee (SSIC) have voted to close their investigations into two cases that provoked the ire of many when they were first reported last year, the controversial Nu’ufou matter and the Kite Runner’s infamous trip to Samoa.

The committee met after the Senate’s regular session last Thursday and Chairman Senator Togiola T.A. Tulafono informed members that no evidence was found of any major laws being violated in both cases.

The Nu’ufou matter first came to public attention by word of mouth and social media that some local businessmen including some prominent names in the community, were surveying lands in the Ituau Malosi District that had never been worked on, and were trying to register these lands in their names.

As a result, there was a lot of anger and criticism from families and chiefs of villages stretching from Malaeimi to Fagasa, that laid claim to these lands located inland including the sides and top of the mountain range behind these villages.

Sen. Togiola informed committee members that the information they uncovered during their investigations, has led to the realization that necessary legislation must be passed to safeguard these lands which rightfully belong to families and villages, from individuals who have the means to clear and claim them.

He said that a bill would be introduced to stop the transfer of communal lands, whether owned by families or villages, to be registered as individually owned land. The proposed bill would also prohibit anyone who clears uncultivated land from registering such land as their own, as evident from the Nu'ufou scenario.

On the matter of the Kite Runner, Togiola said the investigation found that no law was broken with the vessel’s trip. He said the captain had changed his earlier testimony that a log book was required for the trip. According to the Chairman the Coast Guard has confirmed that a log book is not required for personal voyages, just for commercial vessels.

Senator Uti Petelo argued that the law had clearly been broken when the Kite Runner was allowed to travel to Samoa without the necessary documentation and asked whether the committee should deal with him.

Togiola agreed but pointed out that the Port Administration senior official, Juliano Falaniko, who had been responsible for signing the documents needed for the vessel to leave American Samoa, had testified that the discrepancy had been rectified when they were notified by Samoa Customs officials.

He said that this had happened before.

Togiola also said that there had also been allegations that this was done with the full knowledge of the owner of the Kite Runner, but according to Tish Peau's testimony, she had been responsible for getting all the necessary papers for the vessel's trip to Samoa.

However, it was her fault that some of the papers had not been processed and she had only known about it when the captain had called her about it.

In the end, the committee voted not to make any recommendation concerning their investigation of the Kite Runner and Nu'ufou cases.

As for the Data House and Talofa Pass investigation, Togiola said that they are reviewing the last remaining documents provided by the company and will inform the committee about their next step after this review.