The ferry Captain of the Tonga Ferry that sunk last week has made provocative comments blaming the incident on authorities. He claims he was pressured to using the boat that sank despite it being widely known to have problems.

Captain Maka tuputupu says that the incident on rusted loading ramps that allowed too much water onto the ship. He spoke out claiming that the Tongan government knew there had been issues with the ship taking on water and pushed for it to remain operational anyway.

So far, the government is denying any responsibility in the incident. The prime minister has said that the boat was seaworthy and implied that the accident may have been caused by negligence or unknown circumstances. He stressed that it was not the time to lay blame, but to carry on searching for survivors and helping families of victims.

To date, no survivors have been found since the initial 54 passengers who were picked up after the sinking. The chances of anymore survivors being found are slim as the area has been thoroughly searched. In coming weeks as blame continues to be discussed further comments will be expected from the Tongan government.