Merick glad with new Personal Best

Aug 4, 2022 | The Hub, Sports | 0

Chole David after her race Photo: VASANOC

Being one of the youngest athlete in the Vanuatu contingent Chloe David ran her 100m heats with pride to clock her Personal Best.

The 17 year old from Mataso Island stopped the clock at 12.60sec early yesterday morning at Alexander Stadium in the 100m heats as her new personal best.

Proud father David Merick stated; “Thanks all for the supports, Chloe run a good race today and clocked a PB — Personal Best at this 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth games 100m.”

The must-see moments of any Athletics meet happened early this morning when this edition went to press with the final of the men’s and women’s 100m at the Alexander Stadium.

Kenya’s Ferdinand Omanyala, who has the third fastest time in the world this season, put in an ominous display with the second fastest time of the men’s heats — behind Sri Lanka’s Yupun Abeykoon.

Defending champion Akani Simbine, of South Africa, qualified impressively in winning his heat with the fourth fastest overall time.

Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah, favourite for the women’s title, laid down a marker with the joint-fastest heat time of 10.99.

Other results

Boxing

Our boxer Berri Namri competed against Amit from India. He lost his fight but was tenacious and brave throughout.

Judo

In the Women’s -52kg Mariel Kalomor fought against Kirsty Marsh and lost at the Round of 16.

In the Women’s -48kg Veronica Tari had two fights. One against Priscilla Morand from Mauritius and the repechage against Harriet Bonface. She lost both.

In the Men’s -66kg Maxence Cugola was against Jasleen Singh Saini. He also lost his fight.

Being one of the youngest athlete in the Vanuatu contingent Chloe David ran her 100m heats with pride to clock her Personal Best.

The 17 year old from Mataso Island stopped the clock at 12.60sec early yesterday morning at Alexander Stadium in the 100m heats as her new personal best.

Proud father David Merick stated; “Thanks all for the supports, Chloe run a good race today and clocked a PB — Personal Best at this 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth games 100m.”

The must-see moments of any Athletics meet happened early this morning when this edition went to press with the final of the men’s and women’s 100m at the Alexander Stadium.

Defending champion Akani Simbine, of South Africa, qualified impressively in winning his heat with the fourth fastest overall time.

Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah, favourite for the women’s title, laid down a marker with the joint-fastest heat time of 10.99.

Other results

Boxing

Our boxer Berri Namri competed against Amit from India. He lost his fight but was tenacious and brave throughout.

Judo

In the Women’s -52kg Mariel Kalomor fought against Kirsty Marsh and lost at the Round of 16.

In the Women’s -48kg Veronica Tari had two fights. One against Priscilla Morand from Mauritius and the repechage against Harriet Bonface. She lost both.

In the Men’s -66kg Maxence Cugola was against Jasleen Singh Saini. He also lost his fight.

SOURCE: VANUATU DAILY POST

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MAV Urges Public to Differentiate Between Mainstream Media and Social Media May 23, 2023
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The Australian High Commission, in partnership with the Lynch and Mataskelekele families, presented their annual International Women’s Day awards at a morning tea ceremony in Port Vila yesterday. The awards are one of the ways that Australia and Vanuatu are working together to promote gender equality and the rights of all women and girls. Australia is committed to empowering women and girls by creating economic opportunities, championing women in leadership and responding to and eliminating violence against women and girls. The Hanson Mataskelekele and Andy Lynch Awards provide an annual opportunity to highlight the significant contribution that women make across all sectors in Vanuatu. The Hanson Mataskelekele and Andy Lynch Awards provide an annual opportunity to highlight the significant contribution that women make across all sectors in Vanuatu. The 2023 Andy Lynch Award for Excellence in the Community Sector was presented to Ms Janet Sine, Lead Technical Coach at the Sanma Creative Industries Community Company (SCICC) supporting headwear producers across the province. Ms Sine is a champion of innovation and has displayed her commitment and support to rural women across SANMA Province to develop their handicraft skills and become economically empowered. She acknowledged the difficulties that women in leadership face, saying, “I dedicate this award to the women I work with, it’s not easy for women working in the community, but by working together we can overcome the challenges”. Brendan Lynch, son of the late Andy Lynch, emphasised that “our mother stood for equality and acceptance for all in the community”, congratulating Ms Sine for her work supporting others. Ms Glennys Vora Kaltapau was awarded the 2023 Hanson Mataskelekele Award for Women in Leadership for her quiet leadership of her team at the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO), working tirelessly behind the scenes to assist the Vanuatu Government’s recovery of its Information Systems following the November 2022 ransomware cyber-attack. Ms Kaltapau encouraged more young women to enter the male-dominated field of ICT, “When I started my career, there were only two or three women working in the field. I hope that winning this award inspires a little girl somewhere to take up a career in ICT or, even better, cyber security one day,” she said. Barbara Sese, daughter of the late Hanson Mataskelekele, noted, “our mother would be the very proud of the fact that there is a woman managing a team in the OGCIO.” In her address, High Commissioner Heidi Bootle emphasised the importance of coming together to celebrate the achievements of women and girls in the country. “Both Australia and Vanuatu recognise that gender equality is needed for a stable, prosperous, and resilient society; it is cross-cutting and should be part of everything that we do,” she said. High Commissioner Bootle commended the two women for their great leadership, commitment, and passion for their work. This year fourteen other accomplished women from various backgrounds were nominated for the awards. A booklet containing the stories of this year’s nominees was also published in recognition of all their wonderful work in the community. ______________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: Vanuatu Daily Post

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Even with them included in the Pacific region, we still do very poorly.” Parliament should be representative of the population, she said. “Women are 50 per cent of the population and it’s important for them to be in positions of leadership so that they can have a part in the decisions that affect their livelihoods.” Some of the reasons behind under-representation Ms King said in her society, leadership titles were retained by male family members, citing a Bislama phrase: “The woman’s place is at home.” “It is a stigma, where everybody just naturally thinks that all politicians should be men,” Ms King said. 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That’s my routine,” Ms King said. “Sometimes I kick myself because I asked myself … I don’t know why or what I’m doing here. “But it’s a reminder that if women are going to make it here, then maybe I’m going to be the trailblazer. “If this journey inspires one little girl … enough to make them aspire to be a politician or to go into parliament in the future then … my job is done.” _______________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: ABC NEWS – THE PACIFIC

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By-Election Looms May 5, 2023
The Supreme Court decision declaring Malekula Member of Parliament (MP) Asang Sanick’s seat void yesterday has brought into question the role of the Vanuatu Electoral Commission (VEC) and Vanuatu Electoral Office (VEO) in screening candidates for elections. The court found that Mr. Sanick was not qualified to stand in the election for Malekula according to section 61(2) of the Representation of the People Act [CAP 146], and that the Electoral Commission failed to pick up on his criminal conviction and sentence. “It was accordingly a failure in the part of the Electoral Commission not to pick up on the details of Mr. Sanick’s criminal conviction and sentence particularly, as the Commission has an eligibility assessment and screening responsibility arising in particular by section 26 of the Act that provides it with the power to declare a candidature invalid,” the presiding judge stated. The judge noted that the VEC received a report from the Commissioner of Police on Mr. Sanick’s criminal conviction, but ignored the advice and declared him eligible to contest the election. The judge also revealed that Mr. Sanick and his lawyer sought advice from the Deputy Electoral Officer regarding his criminal conviction and sentence, and were advised to contest the election as his suspended sentence was less than two years. The question of his eligibility was deemed to be vested in the VEC and not the VEO. On October 27, 2022, the Vanuatu Daily Post had published a front page article titled, “Malekula MP-elect Contested Snap Election Despite Suspended Sentence,” after obtaining confirmation from the Director of Vanuatu Correctional Services, Johnny Marango, that Mr. Sanick is still serving a suspended sentence. Sanick was sentenced on the 11th of August 2021, after he pleaded guilty to two charges of domestic violence (Counts 1 and 2) under the Family Protection Act, and one charge of breaching the Leadership Code Act [CAP 240] by failing to comply with and observe the law (Count 3). He was also the third Deputy Speaker of Parliament at that time and received a suspended sentence for two years, which should lapse on August 11, 2023. The judge’s verdict yesterday resulted in a vacancy in the polling district of Malekula, which the VEC will now address through a by-election for that vacant seat. According to the judge, “This is not a case where the next high polling candidate should be declared elected to fill that vacant seat given the tight voting numbers.” This highlights the importance of properly vetting candidates’ qualifications and criminal records before allowing them to run for public office. The two Election Petitioners, Mr. Fabian Vinbel and Mr. Gregoire Nimbtik, have welcomed the decision and called on Malekula voters to prepare for the by-election. The Supreme Court decision serves as a reminder to the VEC and the VEO to be more diligent in their screening of candidates for elections, particularly regarding criminal convictions and sentences. Failure to do so could result in a voided election and a by-election, as in the case of Mr. Sanick. _____________________________________________________________________________ SOURCE: VANUATU DAILY POST

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