The organised response to Winston and its aftermath shows a military type operation with Frank Bainimarama firmly at its helm. For the first time, the public has been given proper and succinct official information about the extent of the damage, physically, financially and structurally, to the country. It shows the experience of the government officials in charge. These are mostly former military personnel now in significant civil service positions such as commissioners of districts. It shows that their experience in crisis situations the world over comes into good use in natural disasters such as the one Fiji is facing.
Our constitutions always said that the role of the military is to look after the welfare of all the people of Fiji. The management of this most recent disaster shows how it works in practice. With Winston the people of Fiji have seen the measure of the man in charge. And that Bainimarama is in charge, with the Military Council most likely directing operations, gives most people confidence that it cannot be that bad in the end. Not because of Bainimarama's personality, but because the operation is a military one and not left to the bureaucrats.
For too long people have had to put up with mediocre members of Bainimarama's government, the windbags, who talk a lot and are normally on every page of the daily newspapers, and sometimes twice on the same page, but had not been seen or heard during Winston. Thank goodness for that. On the other hand Bainimarama is giving people an honest assessment and rallying everyone to help each other.
That's the best way for us all to recover quickly and it needed someone like him to say it. Not everyone likes him or thinks well of him, or will even necessarily vote for him next time, but in this disaster, he has given the confidence back to the people of Fiji to stand together and rely on themselves alone.
Our constitutions always said that the role of the military is to look after the welfare of all the people of Fiji. The management of this most recent disaster shows how it works in practice. With Winston the people of Fiji have seen the measure of the man in charge. And that Bainimarama is in charge, with the Military Council most likely directing operations, gives most people confidence that it cannot be that bad in the end. Not because of Bainimarama's personality, but because the operation is a military one and not left to the bureaucrats.
For too long people have had to put up with mediocre members of Bainimarama's government, the windbags, who talk a lot and are normally on every page of the daily newspapers, and sometimes twice on the same page, but had not been seen or heard during Winston. Thank goodness for that. On the other hand Bainimarama is giving people an honest assessment and rallying everyone to help each other.
That's the best way for us all to recover quickly and it needed someone like him to say it. Not everyone likes him or thinks well of him, or will even necessarily vote for him next time, but in this disaster, he has given the confidence back to the people of Fiji to stand together and rely on themselves alone.
Aiyaz Khaiyum and Rosy Akbar hit BA town:
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This Indo-Fijian family of three are sleeping in an old Motibhai truck - listen to their plight, the sister narrates their ordeal in Fiji Hindi and her brother opts to narrate his version in native Fijian dialect:
