NEW Commissioner Western Manasa Tagicakibau will continue the work carried out by his predecessors.

On his first day as Commissioner Western yesterday, Mr Tagicakibau ran through the usual motions of settling into a public office at Lautoka and visiting government departments.

Mr Tagicakibau said the transition to the new position was smooth so far but the task ahead was somewhat daunting.

“I am still getting my bearings of the place and settling in but in terms of the appointment as the new Commissioner Western, I think it is going to be a challenging one,” he said.

“The Western Division is a vast area to cover from Nadroga to the outer islands in the Mamanucas, the Malolos and the Yasawas and then onto the Ra region.

“Then there’s a large population that exists here and there will be a lot of people to attend to, especially in the maritime rural areas.

“Thirdly, the West is widely known as the economic hub of the country where most of the revenue earner for government is found here.”

He said a development plan was already set out by his predecessors and the task this year would be to ensure that each proposal was carried out according to Government’s strategic policies.

“The development plans have already been mapped out by the past commissioner and I am here to ensure that the development plan is carried out.

“Looking at the work that the past two commissioners have done, it will be a real challenge for me to fit in their shoes and to maintain the standard that they have set,” said Mr Tagicakibau.