ZOOMING AWAY FIJI'S BUDGET SECRET: Desperate to ensure that no one steps out of his shadow to prove that he is not INDISPENSABLE, Khaiyum is in breach of Cabinet Manual on "Secrecy" from Foreign Soil

A principal reason why an acting appointment is also made is because of the likelihood or possibility that the substantive Minister, whilst overseas, attending to his duties or undergoing medical treatment, might suddenly DROP DEAD thus his departure will not adversely affect the smooth and continuing operation and effectiveness of his portfolios - in his case, many, many PORTFOLIOS

In our recent post we referred to Para 72 of the Manual of Cabinet Procedure, p12, that clearly stipulates, under ‘Absence from Fiji or from Duty’  that Ministers who wish to be absent from Fiji or to absent themselves from their duties must obtain permission from the Prime Minister. Application for leave of absence from his/her duties or for permission to leave Fiji should be submitted through the Secretary to Cabinet. The application should be accompanied by a recommendation regarding the responsibilities of the Minister’s portfolio during the absence. As a matter of courtesy Ministers whose absence from Fiji has been approved by the Prime Minister should inform the President.
* In an attempt to circumvent this Cabinet rule and procedure, especially in relation to the requirement that the Minister should have submitted together with his application for leave of absence a recommendation as to which Minister or Ministers should be appointed to act in the many portfolios he holds during his absence overseas, the Ministry of Economy (MOE)  has mischievously and ingeniously arranged that  Aiyaz Sayed Khasiyum will conduct a briefing on the national budget virtually to his MOE staff from his hospital bed in Singapore
*This proposed virtual briefing by Khaiyum on Fiji’s annual budget is clearly designed to justify why Bainimarama should not make an acting appointment while Khaiyum is in Singapore, is highly irregular, totally unacceptable, unprecedented and goes against the grain of Para 72 of the Manual of Cabinet Procedure as well as the provisions relating to “Secrecy” as specified in para 8 to Para 13 of the Manual of Cabinet Procedure, pp 2 and 3.
* Para 9 in particular reads:  'Every paper put before Cabinet, including the Agenda, is secret. Some subjects, of course, are secret in themselves. Matters of high policy and fiscal measures are secret because premature disclosure would prejudice the issue or give to some persons unfair advantage. But all subjects coming before the Cabinet are treated as secret because outside knowledge that the Cabinet is considering any subject may hamper free discussions or may give rise to undesirable speculation, or may result in embarrassment to members through attempts by interested parties to influence them.'
*The plan by the MOE to conduct this virtual briefing on the 2021/2022 Fijian Budget and public consultations is not only ill-conceived but is in breach and contrary to the secrecy provisions of the Manual of Cabinet Procedure, especially since Khaiyum is conducting these  briefings on Fiji’s budget and fiscal measures policies from a foreign country which many of Fiji’s major competitors and donor agencies like ADB in Manila and Asian banks can easily access or listen to. Indeed, this briefing by Khaiyum or the MOE staff would be tantamount to a threat to Fiji’s national interests and security.
* The practice of appointing another  Minister to act in place of a Minister going out of the country on leave of absence or for medical treatment is almost universal, especially in Commonwealth countries so it is even more remarkable that the FijiFirst Party government which constantly preach about good governance has deliberately ignored to appoint one or more Ministers to act in the numerous portfolios under the charge of the MOE.
* The Minister of Economy is also the Attorney-General, the Minister for the Public Service, Public Enterprises, Minister for Elections, etc.
* So who will be looking after all these other portfolios, apart from Finance, while Khaiyum is absent overseas?  A principal reason why an acting appointment is also made is because of the likelihood or possibility that the substantive Minister, whilst overseas, attending to his duties or undergoing medical treatment might suddenly DROP DEAD thus his departure  will not adversely affect the smooth  and continuing  operation and effectiveness of his portfolios