Late Snyder Rini, 76, has been described as a great man, a statesman and a son of Solomon Islands who contributed so much to the development of this nation.

Former Prime Minister and current Member of Parliament (MP) for Small Malaita Rick Hou uttered this at the state funeral of the former Prime Minister and Member of Parliament for Marovo constituency, Monday afternoon.

The service was held at Maranatha Hall, East Honiara.

MP Hou who spoke on behalf of the Government took time to share an account of the life of Late Rini, and to pay tribute to his contributions to the country during his tenure, both as a Public Officer as well as a Member of Parliament.

“Indeed, we are gathered to reflect and to celebrate the life of a man who contributed immensely to the development of our country.”

He said, the Late Rini was one of a few highly educated Southern Islanders in the 1970s.

“In fact, he was probably one of the first university graduates in the field of accounting and finance when he graduated from the University of Papua New Guinea in 1971 and from the University of Technology in Ley in 1974 with a Bachelor’s of Accountancy.” 

He worked in the private sector after university. He joined the BSA in 1975-1978. He became the first local Solomon Islander to be the financial controller in that overseas-owned rice company operating on the Guadalcanal Plains.

Unfortunately, BSA had to close down following the destruction to their rice fields by Cyclone Namu.

Late Rini was a founding member of the Consumers’ Cooperative Society in the late 80s and early 90s.

He was also the founder of Coconut Timber Products until the New Zealand market collapsed in 1990. He was also chairman of the Bait Fish Association in association with Solomon Taiyo.

He was instrumental in the development of Soltai Company, which is now called Soltuna.

Before entering politics, Late Rini was a senior public officer in the Solomon Islands Public Service.

He was picked by the late former Prime Minister Honourable Mamaloni from the private sector to the position of Permanent Secretary.

In fact, Late Rini was the first Permanent Secretary (PS) to be recruited from outside of public service under a new policy to have line ministry CEOs recruited on fixed contracts.

Since then, this has now become the recruitment policy and practice.

In 1989, he served as Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Natural Resources and then as Chairman of the Solomon Islands National Provident Fund in 1990 to 1996.

At that time, the Departments of Geology, Mines, Water Resources and Environment and Conservation, Energy and Petroleum were all under the Ministry of Natural Resources portfolio.

From 1990 to 1996, he held the Permanent Secretary position in the Ministry of Finance and National Planning Development, which at that time was one ministry.

During that period as PS for Finance, he was also ex-official member on the Central Bank Board and Chairman of the Solomon Islands National Provident Fund, NPF.

Late Rini’s qualifications and experience in the private sector and public service prepared him well, not only for his role as Member of Parliament, but also as a Member of Cabinet.

More particularly, his experience on the working of the government was a very useful tool in his contributions in public policy formulation.

Late Rini began his political career in 1997 upon winning the parliamentary seat for Marovo constituency at the General Elections in August of that same year.

In Parliament, Late Rini rose rapidly through the ranks. Under Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, he was appointed Minister for Finance and Treasury from July 2000 to December 2001.

In 2001, he was re-elected into Parliament.

He was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and was in charge of National Planning and Development in 2001.

In December 2002 to mid-2003, he was appointed as Minister for Finance and Treasury while continuing as Deputy Prime Minister.

Following another reshuffle in mid-2003, Late Rini was appointed Minister of Education and Human Resources Development, a position he held as he continued to be the Deputy Prime Minister until 2006.

These various roles placed Late Rini in the centre of economic planning, budgeting and education policy in government.

Late Rini’s casket Lie in State inside the Parliament chamber on Monday morning

At the General Elections in 2006, Late Rini retained his seat in Marovo constituency.

On April 18, that year, he was elected by the National Parliament to become the 10th Prime Minister of Solomon Islands in the 8th Parliament.

Unfortunately, this outcome provoked widespread public unrest in the capital.

Rioting broke out, including violent clashes with the RSIPF as well as looting and arson in Chinatown.

“This was one of the dark days in our country’s history.

“Facing a looming no-confidence motion and continued turmoil, Late Rini resigned on April 26, 2006.

His eight days as PM remained the shortest in Solomon Island’s history. Late Rini served on the opposition bench until 2007.

In December of that year, a change of government saw Dr Derek Sikua becoming the Prime Minister.

Late Rini was then returned to Cabinet, which he was appointed as Minister for Finance and Treasury.

He served in that key portfolio until the end of the House in 2010.

Following the General Elections in 2010, Late Rini again retained the seat in Marovo constituency.

Under the 10th Prime Minister of Hon. Danny Philip, he took the Ministry of Finance and Treasury from 2010 to 2011.

Following another change in government, Late Rini also lost that portfolio.

However, at the 2014 General Elections, Late Rini retained the Marovo seat for the fifth time.

He was again appointed to the Finance Ministry portfolio from 2014 to 2017.

Late Rini left Parliament in 2019 when he was succeeded by the current Member of Parliament, Hon. Chacha Bule Amoi.

Apart from holding the position of Deputy Prime Minister several times, Late Rini served as Member of Parliament for Marobo constituency for five consecutive terms and held the Finance portfolio four times.

Late Hon. Rini was a dedicated public servant and a statesman who served this country more than two decades.

He had a seemingly quiet character, but he was stern and firm on what he believes is right.

“At the personal level, our paths met in 1993 when I was at the Central Bank of Some Islands and Late Rini was the ex-official Member of the Board of the Central Bank for a number of years.

“This was an extraordinary difficult period for all of us. Government revenue was very hard to come by and no bank would lend any money to the government.

“But he was steadfast in ensuring government services continued. Indeed, throughout those years, Late Rini was known for his expertise in fiscal policy and budgeting and strong influence on national development priorities.

“For such an exemplary role and positive impact during his five terms as Member of Parliament and on public finance policy and more generally on public service, on behalf of the Prime Minister, the government and the people of Some Islands, I wish to acknowledge the contributions by this great man, a statesman and a son of Solomon Islands.

“On behalf of the Prime Minister and the government, I acknowledge his contributions as Cabinet Minister, Member of Caucus and Member of the Opposition during his term in Parliament.

“As we pay tribute to his work in the public sector and his contributions in the private sector, we all learn of his great contributions.”

On Monday morning, his body lie in state at the Parliament chamber before the funeral service was held in the afternoon.

His body will be transported onboard MV Auki Express to Telina, Marovo, Western Province on Tuesday morning.

By Andrianah Delasalet Kole

Solomon Star, Honiara