The Ashton-Lewis Supreme Court Commission of Inquiry has claimed its first scalp with the announcement by the Prime Minister that the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade, Manoa Kamikamica, has relinquished his positions after being charged by FICAC with corruption-related offences.
Faced with a choice of standing aside voluntarily or being pushed – because one of his accusers, Kalaveti Ravu, had already been removed from the Cabinet after being charged by FICAC – Kamikamica has chosen to fall on his own sword.
It will come at considerable cost and not only to his reputation. He loses his ministerial salary and privileges by becoming one of the government’s handful of backbenchers and will stay there for the duration of his criminal trial, which is bound to extend into next year – election year.
It is a disaster for Kamikamica personally and a disaster for the Coalition – a government embroiled in scandal just as it seeks the trust of the Fijian people to govern for another term. And with several other investigations being pursued by FICAC and the police, the prospect of further prosecutions to come.
The first hearing of the case against Kamikamica is in his absence today (Wednesday). But the Prime Minister’s statement says he will be returning to Fiji from overseas later in the day.
UPDATE: Strangely, he is reportedly being represented by lawyer Wylie Clarke, who is fighting an adverse CoI mention of his own, having lodged an application for a judicial review of the allegation against him of perverting the course of justice.
At the same time as Clarke will be in the High Court trying to get the CoI overturned in the case that begins on December 12, he’ll also be defending Manoa Kamikamica – its first casualty – in the FICAC matter. Busy boy.
The charging of Kamikamica has, for the moment at least, silenced the CoI’s critics. And it will have sent a wave of fear and trepidation through the ranks of those who are still being investigated. Because far from being a paper tiger, the CoI and its recommendations have suddenly been shown to have real bite.
UPDATE WEDNESDAY AM:
Well he would say that, wouldn’t he?
And guess who else was there? Richard “I have the means” Naidu.
Click on the link below to see the clan swarming.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/807618072164660
Days are numbered for Liumuri Baiman Prasad. Happy Diwali đ
And then we can have a domino effect, starting with Manoa.
GD
Looks like the lists are long. The booby traps of ASK laid around when Fiji First were exiting is still haunting this Government.
You have to give him some points for standing down…. Some others should follow his example….
Nah, no points in stepping down. That’s the least expected of any government official under indictment.
Acting corrections drunk is still in his job, though. Chief Registrar, a convicted drunk still in office.
The porn and weed minister is back as information minister.
Education minister back after ‘yellow card’ for insubordination over FNU where things are going from bad to worse.
Baboon was deemed incompetent as AG, and moved to Justus ministry but back again as AG. Continues to be an incompetent nut job re: at pap agm remarks.
Sona Rolex is still using CoI recommendations selectively.
The circus rolls on.
Yes. It was the honourable thing to do.
Let’s see if the other dominoes will do the same.
Kudos MK đ«Ą
At least Mr Sweet is a man of principle and class.
Heâs innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
No matanigasau in sight, thank God.
Taking it like a man.
Not playing victim either.
And that, Fijian MPs and aspiring politicians, is how itâs done in a functioning democracy.
Donât be a Desperado clinging to ministerial posts like you have nothing else.
Your character and intelligence should match your level of ambition. Ke ma mino, guilecava.
Clean them out SLR. Quickly. Or expect a landslide loss in 2026/27.
Your AGM should tell you that the loud ones on social media didnât bother to attend.
They will also have bigger fish to fry like putting food on the table with their lousy wages. Than queueing up in the hot sun or pouring rain for another 4 years of scandals and circus on election day.
Me ka ni waci mai vei keimami!
Same shit, different day. DVM.
He has been charged with two serious criminal offences that go to the heart of his integrity as a publicly-elected official and you say he is a man of principle and class?
Only in Fiji, eh? Crikey. He is entitled to a fair trial. But let’s await the verdict before such a sweeping endorsement.
GD, is there any credence to long white loaf’s assertions that Manoa was targeted by the Vaklabures for knocking back their signed wind turbine scheme?
I have no idea, sorry. But I no longer attach any credence to anything Charlie Charters says.
He has waged a series of vendettas against people quite unfairly, including Christopher Pryde and David Ashton-Lewis, to protect the reputations of his local friends and associates. And having dismissed the CoI as mostly hearsay, he will be obviously smarting that a big fish like Kamikamica has been charged by FICAC, quite independently of the CoI.
The coming days will show whether it was FICAC or Mrs Vaklabure protecting her family.
don’t get me wrong – not protecting Manoa but Fiji politics is very brutally tribal.
There are already calls on fb for Manoa to form his own party.
Yes, the “My Kaivata and I are Sweet Party”. MKISP.
What a joke.
MKISP – Manoa’s Kilavata Indigenous Socialist Party – was reportedly in the making, involving younger QVSOBs fed up with the leadership of their older fellow OBs.
To be led by Manoa, it was rumoured to have included the likes of the late Vatimi.
Only in Fiji – when someone does the right thing, the crowd celebrates at this rarity, and the subject becomes a hero….for doing what they should do anyway. Why- because it is such an uncommon occurrence to do the right thing in Fiji, it is seen as a miracle.
An even bigger miraculous event is when a vulagi taxi driver returns a lost wallet or mobile phone belonging to an i-taukei passenger, or vice versa. Social media erupts in likes, feel good happiness and declarations of Fiji the Way the World should be.
I think the World, or most of the civilised World, has left Fiji behind in this matter… Race does not matter as much as it does in Viti.
The smiling assassin or Mr Sweet as some refer to him once said that if he gets paid better, then he will work harder. Well, how did that down payment go and what did that taxpayer funded pay rise achieve?
And for the the coupist that wrecked Fiji up, to announce that he will be looking after the portfolioâs of Mr Sweety. Wow, if the coups and National Bank disasters were not enough he hasnât done a thing good this time around and will take more portfolios on with the same strategy- âI am not aware of thatâ. Unfortunately you did not take your chances to make amends for the sake of your grandchildren or your NZ citizen son who are embarrassed by your coup daddy record.
Is the clown aptly given the name Saleshni still the untouchable or sweating like a pig in waiting for D day.
In other news……………… why do our kids insist on pestering the vulagis for sweets.
” uncle, kerekere any spare sweets”.
“aunty, kerekere barfi.”
refusals are met with name calling or stone throwing and the hate just builds from there.
listening to the current debate about corporal punishment in schools, the methodist church has rejected it outright saying that it is unchristian.
methinks if there was corporal punishment in schools those kids would know better.
Last Diwali eve, a Taukei man suddenly crossed in front of a taxi driven by a Bhaiya, about 10m uphill before the zebra crossing between Centenary Church and Vinod Patel on Stewart St.
The man lost his balance and almost got run over, then uttered to the driver (whose door window quickly shot up), “M.. jinamu, you wait, right, kawa ca.”
Kawa ca, or bad breed, is a derogatory term often thrown at the defenceless Vulagi.
Kawa vinaka then are the self-righteous Israelites.
Tik Tok Tik Tok – Pramesh Sharma, Grubsheet called it a few months ago re your mate, Manoa. Your time is coming you self invested corrupt sex pest – say your goodbyes as you are next for a bum raid like Manoa – start learning to pick soap from the ground with one eye open as back eye is in danger – all your crap about us contributors here will literally bite you up your bum, no more whiskey fueled garage parties or photos of rugby games or calling Maona in front of your friends – Tik Tok
How are you feeling Stanley Boci Simpso? Whatâs your next move now that Ann and Manoa are gone? No more living the dream.
I hope the new minister checks your financial records including your tax status, use of the public broadcasting money and your overdues to the Fiji govt for unpaid TV licence for 6 years.
You must be sweating now that Manoa and Ann are history and the PM will come after the buddies who were helping them.
Happy Diwali, Stan, good always triumphs over evil except in your case, good is also evil -watch out fatty pussy, no more cryptic posts on Facebook.
Great to see Stanley Simpson’s FB out now – blaming FijiFirst for his mate’s demise lol – he threatens to start cold and silent war against somebody (assuming he means Rabuka), the only cold thing will be his boci in jail and his mouth will be silent.
Rabuka is coming for you, no need to take the post down, already screen shotted and sent to the PM’s team. Same as yours Pramesh – no need to masi polo Rabuka now on FB, he knows about you and Manoa.
Great to see Richard â Ling â Nose in court today advising little Wyllie – see videos on news sites – he’s probably shitting himself. How is VJ Narayan and POoPOo William Parkinson feeling? Also team Kamala CumCum?
Come on GD, we don’t need to be subjected to nasty name calling from anonymous people.
I object to the pettiness against William Parkinson.
Stand up anyone who can achieve the success that Parkinson has or shut up!
Vinaka, William. Now go and change your underpants. That’s a good boy.
What was Hari Punja like?
End of the era, Manoa – culled in your corporate world vocabulary. Isa what will happen to Ann and Stanley now – Lynda and Filipe have won the war. Are you getting arrested tonight when you arrive? Your bail to be set on Friday – oil your Boci with Pure Fiji cream in business class flight back home, I hope your arrest doesnât affect the $2B investment you claim.
What really irks me is that with all the money these lawyers, MPs’ and others who have made their money through corrupt means,they can’t buy business suits which have been tailored properly or are the right fit.
Surely if you’re going to be corrupt, do it with style…
Are you intimating that Baimaan is stylish?
Manoa Sweet was among those from the Coalition Parties that collaborated to oust Frank Bainimarama and Khaiyum from power, but nobody knew anything about them, what drives them and what their values were.
Once in power Mr Sweet did some quite startling things, some of which had raised the ire of even Grubsheet. The first one was getting his wife, Anne to accompany him and speak for him and Fiji in his first trade mission to New Zealand.
Then he gave a licence to a New Zealand medicinal marijuana company without any competitive bidding to produce medicinal marihuana in Fiji. The company, Aether Pacific Pharmaceuticals Ltd, trading as Medical Kiwi, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Fiji government to develop the medicinal cannabis industry in Fiji.
But after the MOU had been signed the company went into liquidation owing millions of dollars, and Sweet knew nothing about it. Then he gleefully announced Google was opening a data centre at Natadola but went quiet all of a sudden when someone pointed out the facilityâs power requirement was nearly three times the current electricity consumption of the whole country.
Without his party including it in its manifesto he took it upon himself to adopt Khaiyumâs agenda for a cashless society and pushed in a big way for a digital national ID card and a Central Bank Digital currency. Some of the churches started to protest and Prime Minister Rabuka had to step in and suspend the unapproved cashless policy.
Perhaps Sweetâs biggest brain snap was his support for Anneâs fellow Jasper Secondary School alumini, Barbara Malimali as FICAC head. That brought him heaps of trouble with the COI. Now PAP has been split following a failed Vote of No Confidence attempt at the PAP AGM at the weekend.
Sweetâs name has been linked to proponents of a new Youth Party like lawyer, Pavan Singh, whom Sweet had appointed to two boards, content creator Bis Moce and Noleen Billingâs from Savusavu. From a political standpoint, Rabuka did the right think to deal with him decisively. He would of killed the party had he remained unmasked for longer.
Manoa has acted appropriately by tendering his resignation â commendations to him for doing so. However, questions remain regarding Temo, Rabuku, and others implicated in the COI report.
Why has no action been taken against them? It appears that certain individuals are being afforded undue leniency. Friendship with the President should not grant anyone the privilege to interpret or apply the law to their own advantage.
C.S. Lewis said: âThe greatest evil is not done in those sordid âdens of crimeâ but it is conceived and ordered in clean, carpeted, warmed and well-lighted offices, by quiet men with white collars and and smooth-shaven cheeks who do not need to raise their voices.â
This aptly describes that bastard. Richard âI have the meansâ Naidu.
The big swinging dicks, or rather dickheads, of the law society Wiley Clarke and Richard were seen at the courthouse today.
These preening roosters need to be investigated, especially that dork Richard for his role as chairman of the fiscal review committee in the vat hike, the undeserved 7 year tax holiday for his Munro Leys client Fiji Water, and the Aspen Hospital contract.
This lowlife was the paragon of good governance when Fiji First was in government, only to use his political connections when government changed, to the financial advantage his law firm.
A hypocrite of the highest order.
The Fiji Water tax holiday facilitated from behind the scenes tarnished Prime Minister Rabukaâs image and that of his government. Taxpayers and resource owners were betrayed and given a raw deal for the benefit of a corporate client.
Investigate the bastards.
Manoa : Mirror mirror on the wall, whatâs going to happen now?
Mirror : are you stupid Manoa, this isnât your Yeh Yeah with your stupid smile situation, you are highly likely getting convicted and going to jail.
Manoa : Jail, but Ann said that canât happen, Wyllie and Richard said these charges are wrong
Mirror : are you dumb or just dim, wake up and smell the urine, get used to it, thatâs how it smells in Naboro cells.
Manoa : but Rabuka my Tau promised nothing will happen
Mirror : look you ignoramus, Dumbass, Moronic, brainless Retard, you have been played and bitten by the ultimate snake. You now have to prepare for jail, where your rear end will be owned by another person slightly bigger but equally thicker and dopey as you, your cheeks wonât smile for a long time and You will be the shortest surviving DPM in any fiji govt. You are going to a oblivion world.
Manoa : but Ann will be there with me – Stanley, Wyllie, Pramesh, Sandeep, Barbara, Taniya and all my fans will visit me for coffee right? Will I see Frank and Aiyaz – will they talk to me? Will Frank have dinner with me? I am thinking of helping the prison become a corporate- my friend Parmesh can arrange finance for a fee. I am very experienced operator who can get any corporate job so this jail gig should work – I think with my contacts will be keen to invest like the $4B I have arranged in investments for fiji – what do you think mirror?
Mirror : I give up you clueless thick man.
I suspect he’s only standing down because he’s confident his “contacts” will have him cleared ASAP.
Why was Richard Naidu, a Lawyer, appointed chair of the Fiscal Review Committee? Surely someone with a financial background, from one of the CA firms, or dare I say Jenny Seeto who is everywhere, would have been better in the role ?
Reeks of Naidu being a political appointment and jobs for the supporters.