State workers are unable to fix solar-powered clock

Question: There is a free-standing clock fronting the Waikiki side of the state’s Kalanimoku Building, facing the Frank F. Fasi Municipal Building. It has not been in operation for a while. Is there a history regarding this clock? Will it be repaired? It would be nice to see the correct time whenever I take my daily walk.

Answer: It doesn’t appear that the clock — about which little information is available — will be repaired anytime soon.

"We have tried for at least two years to repair the clock," said R.J. Yahiku, spokesman for the state Department of Accounting and General Services, which oversees the Kalanimoku Building and grounds.

The problem is that the clock runs on solar power, and DAGS has not been able to locate anyone who can repair it.

Seiko USA, which manufactured the clock, told DAGS it is "obsolete" and that no replacement parts are available, Yahiku said.

The company was asked whether it had "any troubleshooting information" to help in making repairs, and the answer was no.

The next step was contacting Seiko Japan, and the "marketing department was going to contact us," Yahiku said. That hasn’t happened.

A plaque at the bottom of the two-sided clock tower, featuring a Lions Club logo, says, "This clock tower was presented to the State of Hawaii and its people by the Lions Club International District 330-A, Japan on December 7, 1991 in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor as a token of eternal peace and friendship."

Another plaque above it says, "At this place/Remembering times of war/While striving for lasting peace."

A third plaque is inscribed in Japanese, apparently listing the various Lions Clubs in Japan. In one corner, in English, it says, "Lions Clubs International/ Pearl Harbor Lions Club."

An official with the District 50 Hawaii office of Lions Clubs International said the Pearl Harbor club disbanded several years ago.

The 98th Lions Clubs International Convention will be held Friday through Tuesday in Honolulu, with thousands of members from all over the world, including Japan, attending.

Local officials have been trying to contact someone from the District 330-A club on Kokua Line’s behalf but have not been successful.

DAGS hopes that perhaps the club can help to repair the clock or get someone from Seiko Japan to respond.

Little Known

We tried to find out more about the clock tower and why it came to be situated in front of the Kalanimoku Building but have found no information.

Yahiku said DAGS had no records about why the clock was located there.

Librarians at the Hawaii State Library searched the indices of both the Honolulu Star-Bulletin and Honolulu Advertiser and could not find any references to the clock tower.

Daniel Martinez, chief historian at the USS Arizona Memorial, said he’s never heard about the clock, and he was on the committee that planned events connected with the 50th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack.

"It’s one of the greatest-kept secrets of the 50th anniversary," he said, adding that he thinks such a gift would have warranted news coverage.

That’s because reconciliation was in the air back in 1991, even though there was still a lingering edginess.

Then-President George H.W. Bush reflected that forgiveness in his speech at Pearl Harbor, notably when he said, "I have no rancor in my heart toward Germany or Japan — none at all. And I hope, in spite of the loss, that you have none in yours. This is no time for recrimination."

Mahalo

To Morris, who found my lost cellphone on the beach and called the number I left on the lock screen. The phone was off so you left a message. However, the message was not clear, and I did not get your number. So, Morris, please call me back. — David

Write to “Kokua Line” at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.