Fijileaks to Ministry of Information: 'GOD' shaking left - hand with VEGETABLE FARMER and not a CANE FARMER. MoI caption leads us to believe that Bainimarama is shaking hand with a cane farmer. This eager Indo-Fijian is a vegetable farmer from Nadeva Valley Rd. Where were the cane farmers? They were harvesting cane!
Is Daddy's girl, BERNADETTE Bainimarama, now acting director or
DIRECTOR of Information Ministry?
Chaudhry challenges Bainimarama to public debate on sugar
Prime Minister Bainimarama has a habit of hurling unsubstantiated accusations at his opponents, says Labour Leader Mahendra Chaudhry.
At a meeting with Rakiraki cane growers on Saturday (Sunday Times 24 July), he accused Labour Leader Mahendra Chaudhry and other politicians of spreading “a lot of misinformation” on the two Sugar Bills, that he said were “not true” but failed to give any examples.
In reply Mr Chaudhry said, “I would not be surprised if he hasn’t even bothered to read the Bills. He can only make generalised accusations in front of people who would dare not question him back.
“I invite him to a public debate to clear the air on the two Sugar Bills, including any other topic related to the Sugar Industry. Let the public decide who is right and who is wrong.
“ In fact Bainimarama should vacate the Sugar portfolio because he is a failure as a Minister. Industry statistics speak for itself – cane and sugar production down by almost 50% since he took charge in 2008. The industry is in its worst shape ever with FSC surviving on government backed loans and growers’ beset by problems so profound that over 3000 of them have quit growing cane, with more likely to join them.
“All this happened under Bainimarama’s stewardship of the industry,” Mr Chaudhry said.
Mr. Bainimarama is just a bundle of contradictions himself. He informs the growers that sections of the “reform” Bill will take the industry back to the colonial era, and will therefore be removed.
Then he turns around and accuses his critics of saying that the Bills would take us back to the days of the Girmit
The truth is that the two Sugar Bills are regressive, they remove the democratic rights of the growers and have been totally rejected by them.
This was made categorically clear in the two rounds of public discussions held by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Economic Affairs. Not a single person who appeared before the Committee spoke in favour of the Bills.
The FLP also refutes claims made in the newspaper that growers who were former members of the Party had now moved to the FFP. “They could well be plants of the Fiji First Party claiming to be former FLP members,” said Mr Chaudhry.
Prime Minister Bainimarama has a habit of hurling unsubstantiated accusations at his opponents, says Labour Leader Mahendra Chaudhry.
At a meeting with Rakiraki cane growers on Saturday (Sunday Times 24 July), he accused Labour Leader Mahendra Chaudhry and other politicians of spreading “a lot of misinformation” on the two Sugar Bills, that he said were “not true” but failed to give any examples.
In reply Mr Chaudhry said, “I would not be surprised if he hasn’t even bothered to read the Bills. He can only make generalised accusations in front of people who would dare not question him back.
“I invite him to a public debate to clear the air on the two Sugar Bills, including any other topic related to the Sugar Industry. Let the public decide who is right and who is wrong.
“ In fact Bainimarama should vacate the Sugar portfolio because he is a failure as a Minister. Industry statistics speak for itself – cane and sugar production down by almost 50% since he took charge in 2008. The industry is in its worst shape ever with FSC surviving on government backed loans and growers’ beset by problems so profound that over 3000 of them have quit growing cane, with more likely to join them.
“All this happened under Bainimarama’s stewardship of the industry,” Mr Chaudhry said.
Mr. Bainimarama is just a bundle of contradictions himself. He informs the growers that sections of the “reform” Bill will take the industry back to the colonial era, and will therefore be removed.
Then he turns around and accuses his critics of saying that the Bills would take us back to the days of the Girmit
The truth is that the two Sugar Bills are regressive, they remove the democratic rights of the growers and have been totally rejected by them.
This was made categorically clear in the two rounds of public discussions held by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Economic Affairs. Not a single person who appeared before the Committee spoke in favour of the Bills.
The FLP also refutes claims made in the newspaper that growers who were former members of the Party had now moved to the FFP. “They could well be plants of the Fiji First Party claiming to be former FLP members,” said Mr Chaudhry.