The Commission of Inquiry into the appointment of Barbara Malimali as FICAC Commissioner has sought an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, as its demand for the suspension of Malimali to protect FICAC witnesses from intimidation continues to be ignored.
At the time of writing in the early hours of this morning, we don’t know what the PM’s response has been. But it would be extraordinary for him to refuse to meet Justice David Ashton Lewis and the Counsel Assisting him, Janet Mason, because he commissioned them to investigate what he called the “rotten” circumstances of Malimali’s appointment and his constitutional obligations are crystal clear.
Rabuka keeps saying that the Constitutional Offices Commission – which he heads – doesn’t have the authority to tell the Judicial Services Commission to suspend Barbara Malimali. As a bald principle, that is true. But the PM is entirely missing the point – whether through ignorance or a deliberate rugby-style “side-step” to evade responsibility for having to make a decision.
Section 81 of the Constitution gives the Prime Minister the power to advise the President, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu, to suspend the FICAC Commissioner irrespective of the wishes of the JSC and its head, the rogue Chief Justice, Salesi Temo. And he has a clear obligation to do so now that Barbara Malimali has doubled down in defiance of the COI while supposedly “on leave”.
Temo has yet to recant his public position that the JSC doesn’t have the power to remove Malimali when all the evidence tells us that he does. Yet in a humiliation for the Chief Justice and the entire Fijian justice system, it has taken an eminent New Zealand Kings Counsel, Professor Philip Joseph, to outline the true position at the request of the COI.
It is all there is black and white and Fijian taxpayers should not have had to pay $15,000 to be told the bleeding obvious. But Justice Temo refuses to listen and acknowledge the nation’s laws – an extraordinary state of affairs that in itself demonstrates Temo’s unfitness to head the judiciary or even be a judge at all.
We’re republishing Professor Joseph’s full opinion below but here’s an extract that not only gives the lie to Temo’s claim that he doesn’t have the power to suspend Malimali but establishes beyond doubt the authority of the Prime Minister to advise the President to do so.
Not only is Justice Temo refusing to acknowledge his obligations under the law, he sent Barbara Malimali on “leave” instead of agreeing to the request by the COI to suspend her when she sacked FICAC’s chief investigator. Kuliniasi Saumi, after he gave evidence to the Inquiry
Saumi has been called to give evidence again and Barbara Malimali isn’t at all happy about him going back to the FICAC offices to retrieve documents required for his appearance.
Yesterday we learnt of an email Malimali sent the Commission of Inquiry on Tuesday that demonstrates conclusively that far from being on “leave”, she is acting as if nothing has happened. She is still calling the shots at FICAC and still interfering with the COI proceedings.
Armed with this email – proof that Barbara Malimali going on “leave” is a concoction and she is very much in control of FICAC – Justice Ashton Lewis and Janet Mason have sought an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister to remind him of his legal obligation to advise the President to suspend her.
Will he agree to meet them? We shall see. Will he agree to follow the advice they’ll convey that Professor Joseph KC’s interpretation of the law places the obligation on him, as well as the JSC, to resolve the impasse? Again, we shall see.
But it is the end of the Prime Minister’s absurd pretence that he is impotent to tell the JSC to suspend Barbara Malimali. The supreme law gives him the power to do so directly with the President. And if he doesn’t exercise that power, he too is wilfully ignoring the law.
So a big day in Suva that will test the Prime Minister’s resolve to adhere to the rule of law and stop washing his hands – Pontius Pilate-like – of the responsibility to do his duty.
——————-
The state of play as of this morning from today’s Fiji Times. Strangely – given its front page story yesterday – there’s nothing in the Fiji Sun.
Now by way of background, the full advice from Professor Philip Joseph KC that Grubsheet first published nine days ago establishing once and for all both the JSC’s power to suspend the FICAC Commissioner and the right of the Prime Minister to advise the President to do so.
The JSC is refusing to fulfil its own obligation. But if the Prime Minister refuses to fulfil his, he will inevitably face harsh judgment in the court of public opinion.
Sitiveni Rabuka should by now know that whatever intentions he has for the COI, will not work because by now, every person in this country knows something very nasty and wrong happened during the appointment of Malimali.
It all came apart the moment those inexperienced goons that make up the JSC illegally stomped into the FICAC office to free Malimali from the legal arrest that had her in custody.The placing of Francis Puleiwai on the Stop Departure List is an abuse of office and process. How Rabuka and Salesi Temo and Ropate Green and Tomasi Bainivalu could think they could get away with usurping power yet again is ridiculous for this day and age.
Every person in Fiji knows that the more Rabuka and Ratu Naiqama try to protect Malimali the more credible the revelations by Puleiwai become that Biman Prasad is being protected from being charged and so was Lynda Tabuya. Tabuya, by the way, thinks we are all stupid by her declaring that her salary is slightly over $2,000 when we know that by 2024, she was on a ministerial salary so what on earth do these idiots think?
The declaration of assets by political leaders is normal in most democratic countries as this ensures a politicians income is clear from when they enter office to when they exit so there is no unexplained wealth that appears somewhere and would thus suggest gain that’s not endorsed or through the government coffers.
This COI is the most dramatic investigation to happen yet in Fiji’s history and is second only perhaps to Lynda Tabuya’s sex romps in terms of public scandals.
Sa rauta Rabuka and Naiqama! Salvage your images and that of your PAP. Look around you and note what’s happening. Rabuka’s government is falling apart…Let Malimali go and save yourselves! You’ve been warned!
All eyes on PM but PM is blind and is not aware. People need to sack this incompetent imposter who calls himself PM. Bloody useless piece of junk.
Truth did hurt PM. Now he is on vengeance.Thanks to hopeless JSC TEAM for rogue games control. You all are leeches.
It’s time for a vote of no confidence and a snap election. We have had enough of these coup plotters. Get rid of all of them as they carry too much baggage. Remove them now from the face of all leadership in Fiji.
They need to go because all they have done is bend the rules to suit their corrupt agenda.
The PM should be sacked for ignoring the legal course of action here. So should the Chief Justice. This is total disregard for the law and a very sensitive issue nationally. We have a CJ who has compromised Fiji’s law, a PM ignorant of his responsibilities to the country, and a President ignorant as anything.
We are in an extremely dangerous situation, Fiji, and this is highly unlikely to be resolved till the army commander intervenes.
Who should do the sacking of PM and CJ ?
The Comd RFMF does not have the legal authority to do so.
That is easy! Both Rabuka and Bainimarama have shown how to remove, its called a coup. Not the most idea way to do so but usually effective.
The President of the Republic has the power as he appoints and therefore he can remove. The recent legal opinion of an eminent King’s Counsel supports that. The current President does not have the spine for that.
COMD RFMF does have legal authority to sack the government, it is sanctioned by the Constitution.
Like Section 121 of the Constitution, there has been no law to regulate this situation, but never the less the Commander can go ahead and make justification for his action after the fact if there is clear justification and defend it in court if necessary, but his action can not be considered a “Coupe”.
He can put in an interim government in place as he sees fit.
I have suggested, keep the present government in place as a caretaker government till the end of their term, with strictures on what they can do and and instructions on what must be achieved,
a. put back in place a Constitutional Assembly that was part of the original Ghai Commission Constitution
b. fast forward national discussion and implementation of a new representative system to be applied at the next election cycle.
i. for my money, a One Party State
ii a far second a Presidential system where the PM governs with a cabinet that is nominated from outside of Parliament. In effect, PS’s become Cabinet . This way the whole house is in effect an opposition to the PM, ie. he must implement Party Policy or face impeachment from his own party for non performance.
My 2 cents worth.
Ian, you are just plain wrong. The Constitution does NOT “sanction” the RFMF Commander having the legal authority to sack the government.
Please show us the relevant section. You can’t because it doesn’t exist.
Frankly your views are not only wrong but dangerous. Why? Because you assert them with such certainty when they aren’t rooted in fact.
If you want to live in a one-party state, go and live in China. But we inherited a system which provides us with participatory democracy and the ability to choose who governs us (coups aside) that isn’t granted to the Chinese.
If you want my opinion, what you describe as your “2 cents worth” is worthless. But please at least get your facts right about the role of the RFMF Commander under the Constitution.
I am keen to know how much Barbwire is really paying her lawyers from FICAC funds. If Victor Lal’s findings are correct that shes been/is to be paid $120k for her services from Jan – Feb, then the country is doomed with all these corrupt people.
Go to fiji leaks it’s on there. – payment only for week 5 with two more weeks of invoices due.
We all want a change in government after next year’s election, but the million dollar question is who do we want to replace the current misfits.
The political field is very small and there is not many takers. Maybe the leader who we still looking for hasn’t been born yet.
https://www.fbcnews.com.fj/news/fiji-acknowledges-cubas-support/
Anyone seen this? Only reason I think Cuba will support Fiji is because they’ve now realised Fiji is an easy pathway for their for their drug business with the support of corrupt Fijian politicians and security forces to Pacific, NZ, Aus and Europe!
This case will only be resolved once new government comes in
I doubt it. They will do the same.
Is Tanya Marion Waqanika the most expensive lawyer in Fiii? She charged FICAC $119,000 in legal fees between 20 January – 11 February 2024, according to evidence presented by Victor Lal.
Wow! She must be good!
Malimali seems so confident that it’s almost as if she holds some ammo against the President, PM, and JSC.
The senile PM has created a big mess all by himself. All because he is not only dodgy but a dodger as well. All the lies, the deflections, playing dumb, claiming he did not know or was not aware, waiting for reports, delaying tactics etc etc. All of this will come to kick him up his arse very soon. God works in mysterious ways.
Its the system! PM is working the system. He is brilliant in the most devious way, which is how all our Prime Ministers must be to survive under what I consider the abomination of the Westminster System.
We are in deep doodoo because our representative system does not work and only gives that impression, when in reality, it’s an opportunists lucky shot every four years to get into Parliament. Once in they get to recover their investment and if they get into government they hit the jackpot. If they play their cards right they can “blackmail” the PM into giving them a good slot with plenty of cash n prestige.
All the work is done by bureaucrats.
If we did not have any Parliamentarians that would remove a whole layer of inefficiency and waste.
The PM is everybody’s “b*tch”, if not, somebody’s “b*tch”
Don’t blame him if he makes hay while the sun shines, don’t blame any off them, they need ROI. (return on investment)
There are other representative systems but who cares?
The one we have is ideal for the vast majority of the population who have no agency and need representatives who will bend and be open to their needs.
The elite likes it the way it is, the poor , ignorant and uneducated like it the way it is.
The bureaucrats like it the way it is, after all, the whole point of Parliament is to control the bureaucrats, and the system does not do that, so they are in heaven.
The whole system is dragging us down as a nation, and like all nations that fall, they must meet rock bottom before the people consider change.
It is going to be a very long and slow death for Fiji economically as tourism and remittances keep us afloat. However social disintegration will be more insidious and relentless as our political system ensures that competing “opportunists”, engender and multiply bitterness amongst the growing disenfranchised. The ethno-nationalist rhetoric to win votes are empty drums offer nothing other than something for nothing, somebodies else’s “something”. Ultimately these empty drums are good for nothing, but sell themselves as the messiah. They stand before the people, claim to be prophets, some even claim God speaks to them.
Exactly my thoughts too, Fluffy.
Barbwire certainly seems to have something big on these Goons, for them to be going to such great lenghts to protect Barb & her position.
Is it the drugs connection?