Fijileaks to Mohammed Saneem: When will you report FFP to FICAC?
"Section 23(3) of the Political Parties Decree 2013 requires the Supervisor of Elections, as the Registrar of Political Parties, to publish annually the list of donations to each registered political party or independent candidate. Yet the Registrar failed to publish the list since 2013, the year SODELPA, FFP, NFP and most political parties were registered, and the Supervisor continues to be in breach of this requirement for 7 years up to and including 2020...As long as the law is unfair, and the Supervisor is not held accountable for alleged breach of his statutory responsibility, it is unlikely Fiji will ever have free and fair elections, the “true democracy” we were all promised in 2006."
Adi Litia Qionibaravi (MP)
Shadow Minister for iTaukei Affairs, Justice & Elections
Adi Qionibaravi questions Elections Office compliance with Statutory Publication requirements on Political Party donations
4 February 2021
Former SODELPA General Secretary & Registered Officer Adi Litia Qionibaravi says all donations and expenditure from her tenure as SODELPA GS, are accounted for, and have been audited as required by law, including by the Office of the Auditor General. Hon. Qionibaravi says the Election Supervisor’s announcement today is a red herring to take attention away from the FijiFirst shameful blunder in deporting USP VC Prof Ahluwalia and other challenges facing the nation today.
Shadow Minister for Justice, Elections & iTaukei Affairs and SODELPA MP Hon. Adi Litia Qionibaravi issued this statement today in response to an announcement by the Supervisor of Elections that the Party failed to account for donations made to it. Hon. Qionibaravi was appointed SODELPA General Secretary (GS) and Registered Officer in February 2016 and resigned from the position in June 2020.
The former SODELPA GS said it is interesting that the Registrar made public announcement of his decision on donations to the Party today just as Government implemented its shameful deportation of the USP Vice Chancellor. “The coincidence is interesting and maybe the timing is just lucky for FijiFirst,” she said.
Hon Qionibaravi reiterated that section 23(3) of the Political Parties Decree 2013 requires the Supervisor of Elections, as the Registrar of Political Parties, to publish annually the list of donations to each registered political party or independent candidate. Yet the Registrar failed to publish the list since 2013, the year SODELPA, FFP, NFP and most political parties were registered, and the Supervisor continues to be in breach of this requirement for 7 years up to and including 2020.
She raised her concern on the accountability of the Registrar and whether his performance and statutory compliance is monitored. “So much has been said about transparency and accountability for political parties and elections financing, yet here the Registrar picks and chooses what provision of the law to enforce! The fundamental question is that he must be accountable to someone for failing to comply with the legislation he is enforcing, in particular the requirement that he publish every year the list of donations made to each political party.”
The former SODELPA General Secretary said that she was not surprised that the Registrar found “anomalies” in the annual donation lists of all parties except for the ruling FFP. Yet alleged anomalies in the FFP donor list have been highlighted online, where on the face of it, the FFP donor list suggests that directors of various companies gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to FFP. A few corporate families have given over $500,000. These same families and their companies also won lucrative tenders to provide goods and services to government and statutory bodies. Yet FijiFirst which was the first party to be reviewed by the Registrar, has received a pass.
“Since 2016 I ensured SODELPA met the onerous statutory reporting and disclosure requirements under relevant laws. Yet here the Registrar himself is allegedly in material breach of a key accountability requirement but wants to hound political parties after we have complied with the onerous disclosure requirements. Why doesn’t the Registrar publish his assets and liabilities? Who is holding him accountable? Recently on social media there are questions over his alleged property purchases but who is keeping track of him and senior government officials?”
The Act empowers the Registrar in section 26(3) to ask the Auditor General to audit financial records of political parties and he did this in 2016, one of the years in question. Will he also refer the Auditor General to FICAC?
What the people of Fiji want to see is that the law is applied equally. That is what the rule of law is all about, that no one is above the law and everyone is held to the same law and the same standards. Instead the goalpost is continually shifted by the referee as yet again, only the opposition political parties are subject to harassment from the Registrar.
In a review of election laws and procedures carried out by six political parties in 2017, 121 recommendations for reform were made to ensure free and fair elections or a level playing field. We also recommended that the position of the Registrar for Political Parties be separated from the Supervisor of Elections role, to ensure independence and impartiality in the implementation of the statutory disclosure and reporting requirements.
In response to our 2017 recommendations , the Electoral Commission (EC) said it is not required to ensure free and fair elections. Further, that its only role is to conduct elections under existing laws, not to review the law or make recommendations for reform. Yet the 2013 Constitution in section 52 and 75(2) categorically requires “free and fair elections” for Parliament.
In contrast to the 2017 ruling of the Electoral Commission that it was not their role to review and strengthen electoral laws to ensure free and fair elections, the Electoral Commission in 2014 led by its Chairman Mr. Chen Bunn Young made specific recommendations for reform as did the Multinational Observer Group (MOG ). As usual, the FFP Government picks and chooses what amendments to make, and as usual, their chosen “referee” the Supervisor of Elections cannot be questioned, and which gives the FFP an unfair advantage during elections.
As long as the law is unfair, and the Supervisor is not held accountable for alleged breach of his statutory responsibility, it is unlikely Fiji will ever have free and fair elections, the “true democracy” we were all promised in 2006.
Authorised by:
Hon. Adi Litia Qionibaravi (MP)
Shadow Minister for iTaukei Affairs, Justice & Elections
4 February 2021
Former SODELPA General Secretary & Registered Officer Adi Litia Qionibaravi says all donations and expenditure from her tenure as SODELPA GS, are accounted for, and have been audited as required by law, including by the Office of the Auditor General. Hon. Qionibaravi says the Election Supervisor’s announcement today is a red herring to take attention away from the FijiFirst shameful blunder in deporting USP VC Prof Ahluwalia and other challenges facing the nation today.
Shadow Minister for Justice, Elections & iTaukei Affairs and SODELPA MP Hon. Adi Litia Qionibaravi issued this statement today in response to an announcement by the Supervisor of Elections that the Party failed to account for donations made to it. Hon. Qionibaravi was appointed SODELPA General Secretary (GS) and Registered Officer in February 2016 and resigned from the position in June 2020.
The former SODELPA GS said it is interesting that the Registrar made public announcement of his decision on donations to the Party today just as Government implemented its shameful deportation of the USP Vice Chancellor. “The coincidence is interesting and maybe the timing is just lucky for FijiFirst,” she said.
Hon Qionibaravi reiterated that section 23(3) of the Political Parties Decree 2013 requires the Supervisor of Elections, as the Registrar of Political Parties, to publish annually the list of donations to each registered political party or independent candidate. Yet the Registrar failed to publish the list since 2013, the year SODELPA, FFP, NFP and most political parties were registered, and the Supervisor continues to be in breach of this requirement for 7 years up to and including 2020.
She raised her concern on the accountability of the Registrar and whether his performance and statutory compliance is monitored. “So much has been said about transparency and accountability for political parties and elections financing, yet here the Registrar picks and chooses what provision of the law to enforce! The fundamental question is that he must be accountable to someone for failing to comply with the legislation he is enforcing, in particular the requirement that he publish every year the list of donations made to each political party.”
The former SODELPA General Secretary said that she was not surprised that the Registrar found “anomalies” in the annual donation lists of all parties except for the ruling FFP. Yet alleged anomalies in the FFP donor list have been highlighted online, where on the face of it, the FFP donor list suggests that directors of various companies gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to FFP. A few corporate families have given over $500,000. These same families and their companies also won lucrative tenders to provide goods and services to government and statutory bodies. Yet FijiFirst which was the first party to be reviewed by the Registrar, has received a pass.
“Since 2016 I ensured SODELPA met the onerous statutory reporting and disclosure requirements under relevant laws. Yet here the Registrar himself is allegedly in material breach of a key accountability requirement but wants to hound political parties after we have complied with the onerous disclosure requirements. Why doesn’t the Registrar publish his assets and liabilities? Who is holding him accountable? Recently on social media there are questions over his alleged property purchases but who is keeping track of him and senior government officials?”
The Act empowers the Registrar in section 26(3) to ask the Auditor General to audit financial records of political parties and he did this in 2016, one of the years in question. Will he also refer the Auditor General to FICAC?
What the people of Fiji want to see is that the law is applied equally. That is what the rule of law is all about, that no one is above the law and everyone is held to the same law and the same standards. Instead the goalpost is continually shifted by the referee as yet again, only the opposition political parties are subject to harassment from the Registrar.
In a review of election laws and procedures carried out by six political parties in 2017, 121 recommendations for reform were made to ensure free and fair elections or a level playing field. We also recommended that the position of the Registrar for Political Parties be separated from the Supervisor of Elections role, to ensure independence and impartiality in the implementation of the statutory disclosure and reporting requirements.
In response to our 2017 recommendations , the Electoral Commission (EC) said it is not required to ensure free and fair elections. Further, that its only role is to conduct elections under existing laws, not to review the law or make recommendations for reform. Yet the 2013 Constitution in section 52 and 75(2) categorically requires “free and fair elections” for Parliament.
In contrast to the 2017 ruling of the Electoral Commission that it was not their role to review and strengthen electoral laws to ensure free and fair elections, the Electoral Commission in 2014 led by its Chairman Mr. Chen Bunn Young made specific recommendations for reform as did the Multinational Observer Group (MOG ). As usual, the FFP Government picks and chooses what amendments to make, and as usual, their chosen “referee” the Supervisor of Elections cannot be questioned, and which gives the FFP an unfair advantage during elections.
As long as the law is unfair, and the Supervisor is not held accountable for alleged breach of his statutory responsibility, it is unlikely Fiji will ever have free and fair elections, the “true democracy” we were all promised in 2006.
Authorised by:
Hon. Adi Litia Qionibaravi (MP)
Shadow Minister for iTaukei Affairs, Justice & Elections
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