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“SODELPA has learned nothing. Instead
of providing the country with a vision of a new Fiji, it is dragging
everyone backwards by employing the same old fear-mongering tactics
of the old Fiji. Every political party has the right to develop the
manifesto of their choosing, but I have to point out that so much of
what this leader of SODELPA says is utter nonsense.”
Mr Bainimarama said: “Our nation’s
new Constitution protects the rights of all Fijians, including
unprecedented levels of protection of iTaukei land in the Bill of
Rights. In fact, Ro Teimumu was part of a Government that eroded
iTaukei land rights by allowing the conversion of native land to
freehold title. The new Constitution for example gives landowners now
a fair share of royalties from mining activity. There are other
protections and benefits. In short, the truth is that my Government
has strengthened iTaukei rights, not eroded them.
“My Government has also empowered
ordinary Fijians by giving them the things they need to improve their
own lives and those of their families. But Ro Teimumu wants to take
away that power and hand it back to a privileged elite.
“In fact, all of Ro Teimumu’s
comments indicate someone who wants to drag Fiji back into the past.
She demonstrably avoids talking about the need to deliver basic
services to ordinary Fijians – which has been the cornerstone of my
Government’s reform programmes – because she was part of an SDL
Government that always made false promises but never delivered.
“She mentions jobs and economic
growth, but what politician wouldn’t? Nowhere does she actually
present any economic policies or initiatives that will create those
jobs and stimulate that growth. The remarkable economic turnaround
that Fiji is currently experiencing hasn’t been based on words, but
on the smart and consistent policies put in place by my Government,
which we will continue.”
Ro Teimumu said: “Our central goals
in promoting sustained growth in all parts of the economy are to
accelerate employment creation, continually improve the health and
general well-being of our population, reduce income inequalities,
eradicate homelessness and poverty, and ensure that Government
services and the benefits of development are spread evenly in all
areas of Fiji.”
The PM said: “The SODELPA says that
she will restore the power of the chiefs and remove equal
distribution of lease monies. She should know that a chief’s mana
is not based on receiving lease money. It is based on looking after
your people. It means caring and loving your people not taking away
their fair share of money. What’s more, the direct distribution of
lease money is improving the lives of ordinary commoner Fijians,
empowering them to take charge of their own destiny. We can already
see it leading to economic growth as ordinary people take greater
ownership of their economic resources and capabilities.
“She also says that she will restore
the FAB scholarship scheme and the multi-ethnic scholarship programme
– a divided way of looking at building national capacity. As a
previous Minister for Education, she should understand that more
Fijian youths than ever before now have access to tertiary education
under the new toppers scholarship and Government loan scheme. To
revert to the old system would rob so many students around the
country of the opportunity to pursue their dreams with a university
education.
“It would also mean going back to
that system that lacked transparency where you accessed scholarships
depending many times on who you were or who you knew. She is
noticeably silent on my Government’s policy of free primary and
secondary education. She is notably silent on the subsidised bus
fares and free text books that we offer. I also note that she never
made any such progress or put in place such initiatives when she was
Minister for Education.”
Ro Teimumu said: “Recognising the
importance of giving as many of our students fair and equal
opportunity for higher level tertiary education, the SODELPA-led
multi-party government will reinstate the FAB scholarship scheme and
the multi-ethnic scholarship programme for eligible students from low
income families.”
The PM said: “Her comments about
bringing God back into our national life are frankly offensive. Is
she saying that God has been absent from our lives? Is she saying
that God has not been in Fiji? This is an insult to all believing men
and women of our country. God is central to our national life and no
Fijian is being prevented from worshipping privately or publicly.
“And our new Constitution guarantees
religious freedom – for every Fijian to choose for themselves. The
Secular State ensures that the Government of the day does not force
one denomination or one faith on anyone and at the same time promotes
religious freedom for all.”
Ro Teimumu said: “They see no place
for God in their 2013 Constitution. They made this decision without
the permission of the people and then declared that it had our
approval. Let me, therefore, give this undertaking. If you give
SODELPA victory in the general elections, our very first action will
be to take steps to restore God to His rightful place in our
country’s supreme law.”
The PM said: The 2013 Constitution is
set in stone and can only be changed through a vote of three-quarters
of the members of our new Parliament and a referendum with
three-quarters of registered voters in support. So for Ro Teimumu to
speak about changing the Constitution after the election ignores that
fact that a very careful, detailed and transparent process will have
to be undertaken.
“It cannot be changed at the whim of
SODELPA or any other party and to suggest otherwise is misleading and
irresponsible. I know they are used to the idea of doing whatever
they like when in government but the rules have changed. We are all
bound to uphold the Constitution: the Military, the Judiciary, the
Executive and the Legislature. A seat in Parliament nor a simple
majority in Parliament does not give a person or a political party
the authority to subvert the supreme law of our land.”
Ro Teimumu said their first legislative
action would be to revoke all current restrictive decrees on
fundamental freedoms and political and civic rights.
The PM said she was surrounded by other
political leaders “with whom the whole country knows she has
nothing in common except their opposition to his Government’s
reforms to empower ordinary Fijians.”
“It is a coalition of the hypocrites
– the same tired old political faces who brought Fiji to its knees
in the first place through their petty squabbling and division and
now supposedly joining hands. They are united only by their
determination to wind back the clock, to reject the advances of the
past seven years and restore their own privileged positions at the
expense of ordinary Fijians.
“This marriage of convenience and
without any principle by the NFP leader and his officials is a direct
affront to the founders of NFP (AD Patel, Siddiq Koya and James
Madhavan) who always pushed for a common roll, fought for the rights
of all Fijians under the notion of common and equal citizenry and the
principle of “one person, one vote, one value”. These lot have
lost their way. Of course the leader of the Labour who is well known
for his chameleon behaviour simply to stay in power at all costs is
in bed with the very people he accused of being racist and corrupt
only a few years ago.
“It beggars belief that these old
politicians can regard ordinary Fijians as being so stupid to see
this alliance as anything more than a total sham – a sham which
involves fear-mongering and not giving the full facts. I certainly
believe in the intelligence of the Fijian people to see through this
farce when it comes to polling day.”
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