Cargo-cult mentality hurting the Solomons, says banker

By MARY-LOUISE O'CALLAGHAN, Herald correspondent

Solomon Islands has to get rid of a cargo-cult mentality that is threatening to destroy it, says the Governor of the Central Bank, Ric Hou.

"We are in a situation where breaking laws and not complying with Government regulations is now the norm," Hou said, when launching the bank's annual report.

"It is a reflection of a society which has lost its sense of judgment, and whose leaders shy away from making important decisions. Instead they choose short cuts for deep-seated problems."

Hou, who is credited with holding the line against almost daily political and physical intimidation since a coup in 2000, said he would not seek reappointment when his term expired in August.

He warned that time was running out for the Solomons, which has debts that equal its GDP.



Hou said the closure of the country's commercial banks - sparked by months of inaction over a failed pyramid scheme - was a result of the same crisis of leadership which had to be resolved if the 500,000-strong nation was to move forward.

"The fact is that after 25 years of political independence, the country is poorer, with more than half the population now struggling to meet their basic needs."

Many in the nation, including its leaders, had got caught up in a "fantasy" that you could get rich overnight without doing any work. "The society is actually decaying."



Hou called for a concerted effort to address the "cargo-cult mentality".

The Solomon Islands, which has one of the highest population growth rates in the world, still suffers from the economic collapse precipitated by the 2000 coup when key export sectors collapsed.

Hou said there were signs of a fragile recovery, but this could prove temporary unless urgent measures were taken to improve the investor climate and restore confidence in Government finances as well as the police.