Roshika Deo is the newest politician in the land. She’s even an independent. No ties to any of the old parties. This is everything Bainimarama said he stands for and yet when a young iTaukei supporter who shares her vision of a new Fiji volunteered to help her, his scholarship was cancelled. This is not just a denial of constitution rights – it’s proof that the whole Bainimarama seizure of power is built on a lie.
Fiji Times June 01, 2014 Scholarship future worries student activist
Mahendra Chaudhry has vowed to challenge the ‘decree’ which blocks him from contesting the 2014 General Election. However it is the Constitution which bars him. Section 56 bans people from being candidates if “at any time during the 8 years immediately before being nominated” they have “been convicted of any offence under any law for which the maximum penalty is a term of imprisonment of 12 months or more”. This was tailor made for MCP and Laisenia Qarase. And it doesn’t matter whether whatever they did was more than 8 years ago. Their convictions are recent and thats what knocks them out. But Chaudhry is a fighter and he’ll take his fight to the campaign trail.
A volunteer working for independent candidate Roshika Deo has had his scholarship terminated by the Tertiary Scholarship Loan Board for “associating” himself “in political agendas”. Deo said her volunteer is a high achieving student who needs the scholarship to complete his undergraduate degree. This is an outrage and shows that the Bainimarama regime has no understanding of democracy. Bainimarama seems to think the money he spends on his scholarships, like all government money, is his personal property. Does he think that this will help him win support? All it shows people is that they have to get rid of Bainimarama. They may not be able to say anything publicly. They may be afraid to even give their honest opinion to the newspaper polls. But they will remember this when in the polling booth when they can have their say outside the sight of the regime.
Fiji Times May 28, 2014 Political agenda
One thing that’s been consistent over the seven years of the Bainimarama regime is that they are better at pumping propaganda than water. How many people in Suva, Lautoka, Nadi and Labasa would be happy if the water flowed from their pipes as consistently as the propaganda flows from Radio Fiji and the Fiji Sun. WAF is trying to tell us that the problem is growing demand. Are we expected to believe that people are drinking and washing more? WAF General Manager Eastern/Central Vula Vakacegu has also said one of the problems is the main supply pipes are thirty to fifty years old. Did they achieve that age overnight? Bainimarama has to answer for this problem because he’s been there for seven and a half years.
Radio Fiji 27 May 2014 WAF tries to keep pace with water demand
http://www.fbc.com.fj/fiji/20191/waf-tries-to-keep-pace-with-water-demand
The jumped-up junior who is our Election Supervisor has told all citizens they must register if they want to be eligible to vote.
Instead of delivering lectures to his elders, Saneem should get busy and work out what he needs to do to make sure that they are able to register. If political parties spend the funds needed to make sure that people can get to the places where they can register Saneem will want to count every cent they use and make sure it complies with the Election Decree of the unelected government. He needs to have a good look at himself. Can someone help him stand on a chair and have a good look in a mirror. He should show he’s worthy of the responsibility given to him before he starts lecturing others.
Fijilive April 23, 2014 You must register to vote: Elections Office
http://www.fijilive.com/news/2014/04/you-must-register-to-vote-elections-office/57361.Fijilive
It’s now the 24th of April and we do not have a new target date for the registration of the Fiji First Family Party. The 22nd has come and gone. Radio Regime tells us Frank will move to areas which he is yet to visit to gather signatures. So what happened? Where has he been already? Does he have to go personally to register the voters? Has he no supporters who can do this? People are saying that some of the people who signed up as members of the Fiji First Family Nonparty were not registered voters. It looks like the plan to make it hard for SODELPA supporters to register has backfired. SODELPA will do all it can to help their supporters register while others who might be willing to vote for Bainimarama won’t be registered! One thing is for sure: every day he fails to register is a blow at Frank’s credibility, exposing the lies of the Fiji Sun polls which show him way out in front.
Radio Fiji 23 April 2014 Proposed party defers registration
http://www.fbc.com.fj/fiji/19319/proposed-party-defers-registration
Commodore Can-Do told us he’d be registering his party tomorrow but he’s now said this won’t be possible. And why? Because he hasn’t got the party members he needs. He told Fiji Live he’s “awaiting for forms from the islands”. So why didn’t he sign people up last month on his tour of Lau? Is he also having trouble finding credible non-iTaukei leaders to join his party and occupy prominent positions? So many of his current line-up are military, which means they are iTaukei, given the lie to his race-free Fiji.
Fijilive April 21, 2014 Bainimarama defers registration
http://fijilive.com/news/2014/04/bainimarama-defers-registration/57331
Fiji’s Labor Party says there is no chance of free and fair elections under a decree that could protect vote riggers. The party’s president, Lavinia Padarath, says that Section 3(3) of the Electoral Decree grants blanket immunity to election officials for their work or omissions. And the decree also prevents parties from taking complaints about the actions of Electoral officials to courts for review. When the Blue Bus of Bainimarama calls to campaign in your area make sure you ask Bainimarama why he allows his officials to be above the law.
Radio New Zealand 22 April 2014 Fiji Labor Party says regime decree shields vote-riggers
One good thing has come from the frantic tour of country by the Fiji First Family Proposed Party. At last the regime has noticed that it’s hard for many rural voters (and we all know that basically means iTaukei voters) to register. People turned up to sign up for the FFFPP party but they were not eligible because they weren’t registered. They told the Fiji Sun they couldn’t afford to travel to Labasa to register because the transport cost was too high. At last Frank has got the message. Many iTaukei voters live in areas where transport to service centres is expensive.
Fiji Sun April 16, 2014 Voter worry http://www.fijisun.com.fj/?p=211474
We all knew that the ridiculously strict rules laid down for political parties were designed to impact FLP and SDL but Frank didn’t seem to think that anyone would expect him to play by the same rules. So he jumped the gun, behaving as if Fiji First already exists as a political party. His problem is he waited too long to get things moving for the creation of his political party and we all know why – he couldn’t bear to let go of the reins as Commander. Mick Beddoes has complained and the Police are investigating. No-one doubts that this investigation will be concluded by the same team investigating the prisoner brutality video but it has already exposed Bainimarama as a fraud and a hypocrite.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/241727/fiji-police-invetigating-bainimarama
