Figures show how many NCEA students achieved level 1 qualification last year and the Ministry of Justice has been encouraged to check its systems following a privacy breach.
Downtown Port Vila remains a no-go zone; Star Wharf, the international port, is still out of actionand parts of the city and some of the villages surrounding it still have not had their water supply reconnected.
The Recovery Operations Centre estimates about 6000 workers from 200 businesses that operate in the CBD have been impacted.
All the while, loud rumbling tremors continue to rock the city; a recent one measuring above 5 on the Richter scale.
Leinasei Tarisiu lives outside Vila but came in to vote on Thursday. She said children in her household still panic when there is an earthquake, even if it is small.
“They are still afraid. Even last night when we had that one that happened, we all ran outside.
Rescue operations in Port Vila, Vanuatu, on December 18. Photo / Vanuatu Police
The only mental health specialist at Vila Central Hospital, Dr Jimmy Obed, said the ongoing seismic activity was re-traumatising many.
As things slowly returned to normalcy, more people were reaching out for mental health support.
“What we try to tell them is that it’s a normal thing for you to be having this anxiety.
“And then we give them some skills. How to calm themselves down… when they are panicking, or are under stress, or have difficulty sleeping,” he said.
“Simple skills that they can use — even how children can calm and regulate their emotions.”
Meanwhile, following Thursday’s snap election, preliminary counting and the transportation of ballot boxes back to the capital for the official tally continues.
Trenold Tari, an aviation worker who spoke to RNZ Pacific after casting his vote, said he hoped to be able to elect leaders with good ideas for Vanuatu’s future.
“And not just the vision to run the Government and the nation but also who has leadership qualities and is transparent. People who can work with communities and who don’t just think about themselves,” he said.
Many voters in the capital said they wanted leaders who would act quickly to rebuild the quake-stricken city.
Others said they were sick of political instability.
A business sign in Port Vila reads “Stay strong and carry on Vanuatu”. Photo / Moses Cakau, RNZ Pacific
This week’s snap election was triggered by a premature dissolution of parliament last year; the second consecutive time President Nike Vurobaravu has acted on a council of ministers' request to dissolve the house in the face of a leadership challenge.
Counting this week’s election, Vanuatu will have had five prime ministers in the past four years.
The chairman of the Seaside Tongoa community, Paul Fred Tariliu, said they had discussed this as a group and made their feelings clear to their election candidate.
“We told our candidate to tell the presidents of all the political parties they are affiliated with — that if they end up in Government and they find at some point they don’t have the number and a motion is brought against you, please be honest and set a good example — tell one group to step down and let another Government come in,” Tariliu said.
Election fever aside, thousands of people in Port Vila are still in desperate need of assistance.
The head of the Vanuatu Red Cross Society was looking to start distributing financial relief assistance to families affected by the December earthquake.
Rescue operations in Port Vila on December 18. The Downtown of the city remains a no-go zone. Photo / Vanuatu Police
Society secretary general Dickinson Tevi said some villages were still without water and a lot of people were out of work.
“We have realised that there are still a few requests coming from the communities. People who haven’t been assessed during the emergency.
“So, we have made plans to do a more detailed assessment after this to make sure we don’t leave anyone out.”
Tevi said with schools due to restart soon, parents and families who had lost their main source of income were under a lot of stress.
In a release, Save the Children Vanuatu country director Polly Bank, said disasters often had the power to turn children’s lives upside down, especially if they lost loved ones, had their education interrupted, or were forced to flee their homes.
“In the aftermath of any disaster, it is critical for children recovering that they are able to return to their normal routines as soon as possible.
“And for most kids, this would include returning to school, where they can reconnect with friends and share their experiences.”
She said at least 12,500 children in the country may be forced to start the new school year in temporary learning centres, with at least 100 classrooms across the country damaged or destroyed.
It’s back to business for Vanuatu on Friday after the public holiday that was declared yesterday to allow people to vote.
Unofficial election results continue to trickle in with media reporting an even distribution of seats across the country for the Leaders Party, Vanua’aku Party, Reunification Movement for Change and the Iauko Group.
But it is still early days, with official results a while away.
