To its credit, the Fiji Sun rips into the Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, in its Saturday editorial, accusing him of dragging his heels in fulfilling his promise to conduct an official inquiry into what Rabuka himself has described as the “rotten” process associated with the appointment of Barbara Malimali as FICAC Commissioner.
Clearly, the government’s favoured tactic of simply riding out successive controversies hoping they go away isn’t going to work in this instance. They go away when the mainstream media and especially the two dailies doesn’t pursue them. But in this instance, the Fiji Sun has been like a dog with a bone in pursuing Malimali’s appointment. And at last we are seeing some of the journalistic resolve we had a right to expect when a new era of media freedom was declared yet gave way instead to a new era of selective or biased reporting and self censorship.
The Prime Minister is said to be anxious as the months go by to refocus the People’s Alliance on the need to get an absolute majority at the 2026 election. But it just isn’t going to happen with festering sores like Barbara Malimali, Lynda Tabuya, John Rabuku and the clown at the Judicial Services Commission responsible for much of the mess – the Acting Chief Justice, Salesi Temo. The PAP needs to clean up its act or it will be toast when the voters eventually pass judgment on its chronically miserable performance. And especially its assault on the institutions of state.
Here’s what the Fiji Sun says this morning as Sitiveni Rabuka prepares to address the national conference of the NFP – his Coalition partner – in the desperate hope of boosting his electoral stocks and resetting the national agenda. It is a devastating read and a masterclass on what the entire media ought to be doing to hold the government to account.
Whoa. Go Fiji Sun, which again puts Barbara-gate on its front page and the Police Commissioner, Malimali and the Prime Minister directly in the firing line.
Incredibly, it also emerges that Barbara Malimali has total power to decide whether to lift any “stop departure”/ “arrival detain” order on Francis Puleiwai.
Which means that Grubsheet was correct to advise Francis Puleiwai to stay in Australia and ignore the assurances by the Prime Minister that she is safe to return to Fiji.
Can Francis trust Barbie? “Dua, rua, tolu. Kaila!”
The power Malimali now wields when she is so demonstrably unfit for the job is frightening.
Meanwhile, the usual rubbish from the Pravda of the Coalition – the lamentable Fiji Times.
Barbie is just getting on with the job. Oi, vinaka.
Grubsheet’s advice? Don’t get too comfortable, Barbie. Eventually the ship’s watchdog will be thrown over the side to save the ship. And your own noise and judgment lapses since your appointment have sealed your fate. Woof.
COMING TOMORROW:
A substantial weekend read. Sitiveni Rabuka’s role in the mutiny in the RFMF in 2000.
PAP is already a qesa toast.
Bring on 2026.
Fiji is ready for the real change.
No MC, no Biman, no ASK, and no stupid right wing itaukei.
All coup makers must return to collecting bottles or go to prison.
The reason why we are in this situation is because we don’t have JVB and ASK.
Don’t be hesitant in admitting that. And the people who were stupidly involved in advocating against them did not have the foresight and many are now regretting their misplaced support.
Admit it and move along.
How obese are these people.
Look at Malimali.
Fat salary and lies will do that to one.
Jeez, sa sivia na levulevu.
Malimali, yes we pay you.
We want a person with credibility and free of investigations.
We don’t want a person who should not be allowed to hold that position.
You get the gist.
Now leave.
Until their death these corrupt and incapable people will continue to fool Fiji and Fijians will allow this to happen. It’s very easy to manipulate the 90% or more with fake promises. Best solution is their total elimination which will not happen. Sad days forever
I’m looking forward to the NFP explaining to taxpayers of Sigatoka how we can apply for 7 year tax holiday as this would be a great benefit and being prosperous, Sigatoka can lead Fiji’s economic recovery. Vinaka!
We have this drunken, obese, loudmouth. We have your “bonking” and drug-taking minister for women and children. I hear that on the grapevine, the AG wants to helicopter into position as CJ, another drunk, promiscuous, home-breaker lawyer, in an open marriage who is abroad. Where are the good women we respect? Were they part of the exodus? We need to educate our girls at a young age to have integrity, to be strong in their own right, and to have sound morals. Good, wholesome role models are sadly lacking.
Don’t forget NFP will no longer be in parliament in 2026. It was the uncommitted centrists that enabled NFP to have 5 seats in 2022. These same group of voters are already looking for an alternative.
The Fiji Times seems to actively avoid criticising this government. And when they do report on controversial issues, they will leave out key details, and generally shine a flattering light on government, rather than the spotlight that is a hallmark of their profession. And then they drop the story.
So much of what the media reports these days are direct press releases from the government (which are sometimes also published on the government FB page) with usually zero analysis.
There is hope with the Fiji Sun at least. Certainly their editorials are in a different league in terms of content and writing skill when compared to the Fiji Times.
Meanwhile Junior deputy PM Baimaan the sellout goes into arse-licking overdrive. Never an event at which he doesn’t fall over himself to praise and drool over Rabuka. Even Rabuka must be feeling embarrassed by now. In Indian it’s known as ‘chamaari-pun’. Baiman is no Indian leader and he doesn’t represent Indians. The most craven, detested, pathetic, self-serving politician in Fiji’s history, for sure. The sooner the Coalition Government gets rid of this loser the better for it and for the country.
Drunkeness and promiscuity are the hallmarks of this bunch of misfits. First there was Biman Prasad purportedly harassing Mrs Tanaguchi, Then there was Lynda the Tub purportedly harassing the minister from the Naitasiri bush. If that wasn’t enough then there is Barbara purportedly having sex with a white Australian judge in Tuvalu to curry favour for her client, BUT for those old enough ,in Rabuka’s first stint as PM , the current AG was purportedly caught engaged in a lewd conduct with his pants down in a government Pajero with the AG of that time Ratu Etuate Tavai. And now Mrs Tuisolia wants to be CJ. She was the cheerleader for Rabuka in the early 90s when she once defended him by saying Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Keep it Fiji Sun! You are the ones holding this sham of a Government, along with GD and Fiji Leaks to account.
Rabuka continues to delay and bluster, and Fijians are starting to see through the promises and talk. For that is the only thing he is good at! Leading and making decisions and actually doing something are not what he does.
As for Barbara, she is another product of the dysfunctional Judicial Services Commission (JSC) and its head the A/CJ, who may be looking over his shoulder as rumour has it the AG is eyeing off being the next CJ. Will that improve the quality of decisions? Probably not!
The decisions of the JSC are not that clever and suggest both a bias and a total lack of due diligence in appointing an A/DPP who was not qualified to hold the post and then seeking his advice on who should replace him, a FICAC Commissioner who was already under investigation by the very agency she was appointed to! She then, one could allege, set out dropping investigation into the President and Government Ministers, which is unsurprising given her support of the PAP.
As for the ‘Photo’ whilst the PM cannot suspend either the FICAC Commissioner or the Assistant DPP he can most certainly deal with the Minister for Justice as PM.
Ministers are appointed by the President on the advice of the PM. This Minister is hopeless when it comes to being a Minister and is clearly compromised by the photo. If he were any good he would understand that talking to those under investigation or conducting investigation as Justice Minister is a No No. No wonder he is no longer in the position of Attorney General.
His being in a social setting with those mentioned is ironic given his treatment of Christopher Pryde. Pryde was suspended on the strength of a photo of him in conversation with the former Attorney General at the Japanese Embassy Function. If there is consistency then the Minister will be suspended. If not then there is reason to suggest the PM is again saying one thing and doing nothing!
Fiji, Fiji, Fiji. One thing is becoming very very clear. This government has no respect, or any inclination whatsoever to follow the rule of law. Oh yes they will follow it only, and only when it will suit or benefit them as payback. So, let’s just start the protest process, let’s attempt to get enough of the local population to rise up and make a stand. Rabuka will not hold any of his puppets to account. The President is a rubber stamp one, so it will take the common folk to get these idiots out of office.
Hi Graham
I tried to get access to the trial judgments handed down during the mutiny trial but no luck.
Mark Tedeschi ‘s interesting account about Rabuka’s evasiveness and shrewd responses during his trial was an interesting insight that I could gleam from a law review journal.
Looking forward to my Sunday reading about the Rabuka Trial.
Hope its a cracker!
Yes, got all of it. It makes for an interesting read, as Fred Wesley would say!
Cut out the noise GD, you noisy fella!
“CUT out the noise and just work.”
That’s the message that Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) Commissioner, Barbara Malimali has given her staff members.
When asked by this newspaper if recent grumblings about the negativity surrounding FICAC had hindered her ability to carry out her role, she replied: “No, it hasn’t.”
https://www.fijitimes.com.fj/cut-out-the-noise-and-just-work/