More than four months after he last appeared in the opinion columns of the Fiji Times, lawyer Richard “I have the means” Naidu is back today with an extract of his eulogy at the funeral during the week of Barrie Sweetman – the lawyer who was once one of the luminaries at the law firm Naidu now owns – Munro Leys – and who did the same job of legal gatekeeper at the Fiji Times.
Barrie Sweetman – a popular and respected local identity who has died at the age of 90 – deserves to be celebrated and remembered and nothing I am about to say in any way detracts from his memory and the esteem in which he was held by a great many people. It is about the man who eulogised him and why Richard Naidu has chosen to stop commenting on national affairs in the Fiji Times when he was one of their star columnists.
The last time Naidu did an original opinion piece – as opposed to an extract from an address – was on August 10 and it was about the debate to change the Constitution. Since then there has been total silence. Until today, when we are treated to an exercise in nostalgia remembering the life of his friend but nothing on the great events of our time.
Perhaps there’s a clue as to why in the section of Richard Naidu’s eulogy on Barrie Sweetman’s impressive client list.
“Straightened days of global regulation’? It has done nothing to prevent Richard Naidu from having the global H2O giant, Fiji Water, as a client on the Munro Leys books and recommending, and securing, a seven year tax holiday for Fiji Water wearing his other hat as Chair of the government’s Fiscal Review Committee.
Naidu – who more than a year ago threatened to sue Grubsheet for defamation for having the temerity to question aspects of his conduct – continues to refuse to provide answers to our repeated entreaties to explain the glaring conflict of interest that has severely damaged his credibility in Fiji and would have had him hauled before a regulatory agency anywhere else.
He is entitled, of course, to remain silent and it is only natural that he is smarting from a great deal of public criticism over his conduct. We can only deduce from his retreat from the national debate that someone who has always been used to being lionised isn’t fond of the blowtorch that has marked his transition to a public figure open to greater scrutiny and accountability.
Richard Naidu’s eulogy for Barrie Sweetman and Sweetman’s illustrious clientele certainly reminds us – as if we needed reminding – that the more things change in Fiji, the more they stay the same.
Naidu also reminds us that Barrie Sweetman was once honorary consul for Norway. Richard Naidu is now Honorary Consul for Belgium.
Maybe he has diplomatic immunity from having to declare conflicts of interest. Yes, that must be it.
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On the opposite page, the old crook and Fiji Times owner, Mahendra “Mac” Motibhai Patel, continues to sing for his pardon – the first man in Fiji, courtesy of the Coalition government, to be convicted of a crime but get off scot-free.
This time, incredibly, Mad Mac blames the 2013 Constitution and Frank Bainimarama and Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum for the incidence of Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in Fiji.
The man is totally off his rocker. And the whole diatribe could be dismissed as the rantings of an obsessive-compulsive were it not the fact that this is coming from the owner of Fiji’s traditional newspaper of record, who is using his power to wage a vendetta against the former government and its two principals and the nation’s supreme law.
Again, anywhere else but in Fiji the regulators would be all over the “Chairman Emeritus” of the Fiji Times. But Mac Patel can write whatever he likes in his own paper and its Editor, Fred Wesley, clearly doesn’t have the independence to tell him to vent his obsessions elsewhere.
The level of vituperation against Frank and Aiyaz is completely beyond the pale. And Mad Mac is now so crazy that he simply doesn’t get the supreme irony of describing the FijiFirst leadership as corrupt when he was sent to jail for corruption but escaped to Sydney on bail and thanks to Sitiveni Rabuka – once the recipient of a gold Rolex from Mac – has never been brought to account.
With apologies to Winston Churchill, never in the field of public discourse have so many stones been thrown from a glass house so shamelessly and with such abandon.
That’s the state of today’s Fiji Times, folks. A once proud paper that no self-respecting rotten fish would ever want to be wrapped in.
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Star Saturday duo Mac and Rich.
A nice tribute. I turned the page and was startled to see this…
Could someone possibly be telling the Fijian people the truth about Mac Patel. And in the paper he owns?
Alas, it is about someone else.
Conmen everywhere. Isa Viti.
POSTSCRIPT:
The author of our first comment draws attention to the following bizarre mea culpa from the Prime Minister about securing arms well in advance of May1987 to carry out his coup that brought the nation to its knees and began the whole sorry coup cycle in Fiji.
Is it Rabuka’s way of playing his part in the Truth and Reconciliation process? Yes, let’s bring on constitutional change. To remove the immunity provisions that should have had him in the same category as George Speight – sentenced to death for treason.
GD. Everyone knows Richard “love handles” Naidu is a compromised lap dog of the coalition govt. Fred Wesley wouldn’t even know conflict of interest and irony even if they yanked at his shitty looking pony tail. Mad Mac just wants revenge at any cost, even if it means dragging his family, business and all Fijians down with him.
What is of particular interest today is a clip from a speech by an ailing baritone buka at the commissioning of some little boat where corrupt vosarogo and a handful of others listened to the evil save attentively. Baritone buka suddenly went off on a tangent and started spilling the beans about how he didn’t have enough guns and ammunition to carry out the May 1987 coup. So he called some navy guy who was about to receive a vessel from overseas and told him to hurriedly commission the ship in Singapore for the Fijian navy so that it wouldn’t be searched at other ports as it made its way down to fiji. In the meantime Buka says he arranged with some agents of his in Singapore to acquire guns and ammunition and load it onto the vessel so that it could reach Fiji in time for him to carry out his dastardly deed of destroying fiji.
Interestingly he admitted all this while gazing longingly into space and punctuating his nostalgia with long pauses of an old man about to keel over. Have a look this video is on the fiji times FB page.
Whats even more interesting about this revelation is that rambling rabuka has admitted that he, whilst 3rd in command of the military, had gone over the heads of Nailatikau and Sanday to smuggle arms and ammunition into fiji so that he could carry out the coup that he has on many occasions claimed was done at the instigation of Ratu Mara!….oh sometimes he also said he was Godly inspired. But these two reasons were quite often interchangeable.
So….Rambo is itching for a coup…realizes there’s not enough weapons to do it…smuggles weapons on board a fijian navy vessel unbeknownst to his commander and his second…receives the weapons and starts his madness to fuck up Fiji for the next almost 4 decades!
So …which navy personnel took this illegal orders from BB? Who were the agents in Singapore that acquired and sold the weapons to Buka? How did they manage to do this without an official request from the Fijian military or Fijian govt? Could Buka have pulled this off himself or did he have help from others in power? How were the weapons cleared in Fiji without the knowledge of fijian border authorities or the fijian military hierarchy? Where were the weapons kept untill May 19th? Were these weapons used in any training before the 19th? Who else knew about all these illegal activities and smuggling before the May 19th coup? Shouldn’t Buka have been court martialled for smuggling weapons into fiji without the knowledge of his superiors? Can he still be charged now…??? Will the jelly fish kalouniwai accept the third in charge of the fijian military today to clandestinely bring in weapons into fiji without his knowledge? Has baritone buka finally lost the plot in a public display of derangement driven by almost 4 decades of lies and deception that he doesn’t have the energy to keep up with anymore? Is rabuka about to have the mother of all melt downs in public for the whole world to see and laugh at?
This pantomime that started under the banner of “Mad Coalition Productions” two years ago is just getting better and funnier.
“Anon”, thank you for highlighting this. I have added the print version as a postscript to my existing thread with the suggestion that maybe this is Rabuka’s idea of kicking off the Truth and Reconciliation process.
I agree that he should have been punished and that if they want to change the Constitution, they should remove the immunity provisions and bring all these bastards to account. If there is a public clamour for this, maybe they’ll leave the common and equal citizenry provisions alone.
How ironic that the very ethno-nationalist people that Richard now supports wholeheartedly are the same ones that were going to roast him in the lovo in front of Government Buildings in 1987.
Only saved by Barrie Sweetman who took him across the road Suva Travelodge (now Holiday Inn).
Mr. Sweetman must be turning in his grave wondering why Richard would want to go support people who want to kill him.
Rabukas co conspirator was the head of Fiji Navy and was the real brains behind the planning of the coup. It was explained to me that the coup was carried out to stop native Fijians from killing each other. They said that they had intelligence that this was going to happen. If this was true why not pass this so called intelligence on to superior officers. This was obviously bull dust. The real reason was at the instigation of the ex PM and the ex Minister of Finance both of whom benefited after the dust had settled.
Re Diabetes and NCDs and contributing causes being the various Fiji First leaders named and the 2013 constitution:
As well as selling NewSprint (Fiji Times) Motibhai Group also produces and markets in Fiji a fizzy Sugar laden soft drink called “Sprint”. As if sugar in a bottle consumption doesn’t contribute to ncds like diabetes! Motibhai – what a hypocrite!!
Who paid for the weapons? Maybe he will finally tell us.
Richard the predator and parasite whose true form we only came to know after the change in government, because he masked it so well under garb of a fighter for democracy, anti corruption and nepotism, only to be the worst among them, securing a cushy appointment for his latest squeeze, who’s much younger than him (hence predator) and obtaining a massive tax holiday for FijiWater, depriving the country of tax revenue, while his law firm recorded a windfall (hence parasite). We thought he was keeping the bastards honest, only to find out he’s a bastard of the highest order, just like his pal, Baimaan, who socked the poor with 15% at, while granting huge concessions to businesses like Tappoos, not to mention benefits to MPs. They are bastards, all right, and more.
In the realm of animated television, few characters embody the archetype of corporate villainy as vividly as Monty Burns, affectionately referred to as Mr. Burns, from the quintessential show, The Simpsons. Known for his malevolent demeanor, cunning schemes, insatiable greed, and immense wealth, Mr. Burns serves as a satirical representation of unchecked corporate greed. His relentless pursuit of wealth and power comes at a severe cost to the welfare of those around him, a characteristic that solidifies his status as a notorious figure in popular culture.
When one takes a moment to explore the internet for images of Mr. Burns, they might stumble upon strikingly similar features and qualities in a real-life individual: Richard Naidu. This uncanny resemblance extends beyond mere appearances; it delves into the depths of character. Just as Mr. Burns is emblematic of avarice, Richard “the Greedy” Naidu displays a remarkably similar persona, marked by a blatant disregard for ethical considerations in his pursuits.
We can undeniably concur that Richard epitomizes the same greed, corruption, and cunning traits that define Mr. Burns. His actions suggest he has aligned himself with notorious figures like Baimaan and Rabuka, joining an elite cadre of leaders who seem intent on siphoning the nation’s wealth, often at the dire expense of the impoverished and less fortunate.
Just with regards to Richard Naidu’s connection to Fiji Water – not only are they a client of Munro Leys, but Nicholas Barnes (Counsel for Fiji Water) had been the Managing Partner of Munro Leys for countless years before he left Munro Leys for Fiji Water. And he was the one that presented in those consultations before govt gave that multi-year tax break??
Fiji Water has had a long history and tie with Munro Leys.
Fiji Water is a neo-colonialist, exploitative, greedy, thieving, conniving corporatist entity engaged in the corruption of democracy and exploitation of Fiji taxpayers to make profits. Stealing huge natural wealth and assets from Fiji in exchange for beads. Its ‘criminal’ activities are aided and abetted by the likes of Richard Naidu and his fellow lothario, the sushi-loving Baimaan Prasad. Criminal in the sense that Fiji Water is taking far more out of Fiji than it’s giving back, despite all the bullshit propaganda, by buying off a few lawyers and politicians, Richard, Baimaan and Rabuka, included, if the huge, unprecedented and highly unusual tax benefit is anything to go by. What Fiji Water did was pull off a financial coup against the taxpayers and people of Fiji. It was aided and abetted by Richard Naidu, Biman, Rabuka and Nicholas Barnes. Will Fiji Water ever be investigated or are they just too big and powerful? GD, this needs a write up of its own.
Indeed, Fiji Water and its agents, Richard Naidu, Biman Prasad and Nicholas Barnes, pulled off a major heist against the landowners and taxpayers of country. These 3 took advantage of our enfeebled, aging PM Rabuka to strike the deal of the century for their client. These three are a clique that represents foreign corporations first and foremost. They do not represent the interest of taxpayers or the resource owners. The resource owners need to execute a counter coup to take back what is rightfully theirs before they lose a valuable resource in exchange for trinkets. No amount of money is worth the risking the availability of water for your future generations.
The tax free incentive is a pre existing govt policy. To encourage new investment and valid for a prescribed number of years depending on the location and value of investment, to help the investor’s operations become established. Fiji water originated in the early 1990s and is long established. Extension of the tax break and justification of it was a clever exploitation by the capitalists and their hired guns..and sponsorship of the Fijian rugby team would have likely sealed the deal. So Fiji Water gained in multiple ways – tax break and international exposure at the rugby world cup obtained very cheaply if you do the sums.