For everything that is wrong with Fiji, try wresting yourself away from reality from a moment to join the fantasy world of Sitiveni Rabuka and Vijay Narayan. The so-called “Straight Talk” program consists of a limp-wristed interviewer holding his subject “accountable” with such probing questions as “what are your thoughts on that?”
And then the Mangy Old Owl launches into a ponderous, nonsensical diatribe that is so far from the burning issues of the moment that he may as well be in Pontius Pilate’s palace in ancient Jerusalem than the Prime Minister’s office in Suva. The same hand-washing, the same travesty of leadership.
It culminates in one of the most disgraceful journalistic exercises I have ever witnessed in half a century in the business – Vijay Narayan at the Prime Minister’s home allowing him to spin his lifetime of sexual philandering into a cynical homily on family life on the occasion of his 50th wedding anniversary to his long-suffering wife.
It is vomit-inducing. And Vijay Narayan establishes himself not as a straight-talker but a crude propagandist for the “Snake” – a man utterly without shame and utterly unfit to lead the nation and deal with the current crisis of governance across a broad front.
They call it journalism in Fiji but it is trash. The new-found “freedom” for journalists to connive with our politicians to feed the nation cheap excuses, cheap emotive drivel and bullshit.
Vijay Narayan has betrayed the audience who looked to him to probe the Prime Minister at a critical time in national life. Instead he gave him a free ride and established himself as Rabuka’s servant boy. Vacuous, simpering and corrupt.
Jesus wept. We even had Rabuka delivering an “I had a dream” moment, a poor man’s version of Martin Luther King. “I had a dream in Denarau”. It wasn’t about Fiji as a thriving modern nation with proper government services and integrity at the top. The Mangy Old Owl had a premonition about the Christchurch massacre.
No, Prime Minister. For the rest of us, dreams of a better life under your government have become a never-ending nightmare.
Towards the end, the Simpering Pussycat asks “what can we expect next year?” Silly question. More of the same, of course. Except an election that might just bring this nightmare to an end.
“And why should we vote for you?” “No reason”, says the Prime Minister. The first ounce of truth in the whole sorry con-job.
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Take a look for yourself, if you can bear it. This is what they call the “new era of media freedom” in Fiji. Comfy chairs and comfy questions. And the Snake able to slither away from the hard questions that needed to be asked but weren’t.
Prepare for an almighty cringe. And then be angry and disturbed that with all the chaos and dysfunction in national life under the Coalition, “Straight Talk” is bent and the supposed doyen of our broadcast media doesn’t play watchdog but purrs like a pussycat waiting to be stroked.
UPDATE FRIDAY AM:
Smarting from the response to this interview and Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum‘s criticism that CFL-Fiji Village is chronically biased, Vijay has included the following line in one of his latest stories:
And we laughed, and we laughed and we laughed.
Was planning to watch it. Guess I won’t now.
You know GD at one point he was sucking up to Khaiyum when they were in power than later there was meaty fallout due to FBC and CFL rivalry. This Vijay Narayan is not a smart journalist. His English lacks proper pronunciations of words, many times he uses incorrect grammar in news (passive and written), distorting facts to carry NFP’s propaganda and more worse he is opportunistic as well as cunning.
Gutter level journalism is floating like a shit in a flood in every newsroom across Fiji. No objectivity, no balanced reporting but quelling the situation with propaganda amd later they boast about the media being free at last.
The program of straight talk should be rebranded to “shit talk” with spineless Vijay Narayan.
Right baat
Vijay Narayan – if you reading this, retire from your role interviewing politicians in the name of Straight Talk. You got no balls to ask the right questions when accountability and transparency is sought by hundreds of thousands of Fijians. If you don’t know what those questions are, another reason to retire from political interviews. Ask IRB 7s to give you full time job commentating 7s. You are a disgrace to journalism. You have let the Fijian people down. Retire bro.
I think you’ve mixed him with the other Narayan who has equally poor grammar and pronunciation. One might think that based on how similar they are in their nodding acquaintance with the English language that they were brothers.
And they are!
Yeah and the one who cannot pronounce ‘man’ correctly has sucked up big time to be a commentator at the HSBC 7s stanza this weekend.
The bloody fool, pinning himself as the leading rugby voice in Fiji. There is only one Fijian rugby voice, the iconic Graham Eden. For others who may not be in the know, this fella is the real deal contender: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1565391286863090
Straight Talk and a few others are a tutorial on how to lick ass.
Don’t want to use such language but Vijay truly is a co@k sucker. He has upped his game by now putting both of Rambo’s balls in his mouth. The only thing left is for Vinay to bend over – perhaps that’s already happened and we just don’t know about it.
This guy is another clown who will eventually see a fall over the next few years.
The man pronounces words like an iTaukei. I do not understand whether it is Third World mentality or he is pretending to be an iTaukei. One thing is unquestionable, he is a proud third-rate, third world, clueless, backward, self-serving and stupid “journalist”.
How the hell do such people get into such positions. I guess the same way all the others serving and appointed by this government. One essential characteristic one should have is that one has to be a dickhead.
Rabuka speaking is so reminiscent of Joe Biden…old, incoherent, rambling, out of touch with reality and hanging by the threads.
Time to cut this demented individual off for someone younger and with a functional brain.
Vijay has always been an opportunist with substandard and gutter level journalism. He tried his best to suck up to the previous government and land a job as director of communication. His fallout with the previous administration was because he was never considered. Since then his tune and attitude towards the administration changed.
He cunningly began to make deliberate and false news reports against FFP hence ASK’s comments about Vijay. Vijay was quick to align himself with NFP, in particular Baimaan and Richard thinking that NFP stood a chance to form a Govt. Now he has shifted to Rambo for obvious reasons.
Just watch and observe how this swine changes his tune come the next elections. Any right minded politician should avoid this dumb f**k and refuse to be interviewed by him because all he wants is fame and glory.
This dickhead ain’t no investigative journalist – his record shows he is more of a mouse with no balls to ask the tough and grilling questions and will never come close to Riyaz who used to grill politicians in Close Up programme 2 decades back.
Remember in the Lion King and how Scar cheated to become King. And the pride land was overrun with the Hyenas? And all of the lions lost everything they had built and maintained.
We have a similar story going in Fiji where a nation which had recovered and built on unity has since subsequently destroyed in a matter of months with Scar (Rabuka) a lying cheat and his pack of Hyenas (Baimaan and co) have lied and cheated and corrupted the whole system and have truly destroyed the nation.
In Lion King, the Good wins over Evil. I’m sure that day will also come when we will see Scar disappear from the face of this earth and all the laughing Hyenas will also see their doom.
The ending will undoubtedly be sweet victory. All in God’s time…in God’s time.
Crime in Suva is increasing. The drug and HIV problem within poor Itaukei communities rampant. Institutions of law in Fiji compromised. The four tonnes of meth seized in Fiji last year is now sitting at the mobile ground at the Police compound in Nasinu has only about 1 tonne to 2 tonnes of meth left. Apparently “rats” have eaten into it.
And the snake sits on his arse being gently milked by Vijay Narayan questions. I saw Narayan interview the RFMF commander last year. I could not bear watching the Rabuka interview.
Slim shady Sitiveni being soft cocked by the Straight talker no doubt!
And it’s only January folks. God help us all.
Third rate journalist asking third rate questions about third rate government. And Rabuka comes up with a gem about a dog chasing a rabbit. Bravo..
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Not sure which dialect he uses.
By name he is indian ,by voice he sounds like Kaiviti.
Also “straight talk” name for a program must have come from a drinking party.
When fijian drunkards get drunk, than they bring up arguments of past and want straight talk .
If talk is not straight, than fight erupts.
Many have been seriously injured or even lost their lives.
Can they not have a name like,Fijian correspondence,
Fiji 60 minutes,Seven Real ,Dinner digest, etc.
The doghla Veej has worked really hard to come up his ‘itaukei’ accent. Poor Veej is unawre the same itaukei laught at him for pronouncing Marist as meerist.
He’s worked even harder to pretend not to be IndoFijian. What a hoot.
It was a case of one idiot talking to another idiot. I have not seen the interview, but I would guess that it was two men with big egos talking nonsense. We all know that Rabuka talks crap each time he opens his mouth. He thinks he is full of wisdom and God;s gift to the people of Fiji. I think Vijay thinks the same.
Are the lives of Fijians any better? I think we all know the answer to that.
Dumb and Dumber? A question each should have been asked.
For Dumb: “Sir, would you say that your achievements in the first 2 years amount to say …. 20% of what PM Bainimarama achieved in his first 2 years of government ?…….. (long pause). ..No? Ok, say 10% of FFPs achievements in their first 2 years?. No? …. Sir? “…etc
For Dumber: “ Regarding your photo here, is that a Gilbert with eyes that I am looking at or a Steeden with eyes? Inflated with hot air or just ego ?
VIJAY NARAYAN, pandering to the spectrum that don’t exercise rational thinking.
I cringed at VIJAY’S attempt to fooling the people into thinking that he has even a minuscule degree of journalistic integrity.
It was loathsome.
The excerpt below is from a comment on TikTok.
“”The PM trauma bragging to the nation with the help of the inherently mediocre VIJAY NARAYAN, putting words into the PM’s mouth.
In fact, our collective patience stretches thin with the daily scandals of Rabuka’s administration, akin to a soap opera.
Rabuka conducts himself like a rank amateur as if this is the first time he finds himself in the enviable seat of the PM. The only reason the PM finds the going tough is because he thinks he inherited the Fiji he left behind after defeat in the 1999 polls, a time when it was easy to hoodwink the people and sweep things under the rug.
And to make up for his embarrassing second stint, Rabuka faces the nation to stoke the people emotionally into giving him a third stint.
Bring back Frank.
Fact remains .
Fiji has not had a competent leader in past 20 years.
What these ex military idiots know about 20th century world.
How a country’s economy should be.?
Now someone who hears smile is going to lead another party.
What!
All are bloody self centered corrupted crooks.
Overnight politicians have become vultures with only friends and families voting for them.
Opposition members becomes ministers.
Really!
Fijians need to do some soul searching.
Who can lead them?
Very big question .🤔
It’s a fact, the only institution in Fiji that breeds strategic leadership is the military. Unfortunately, the good ones pursue other endeavors and we are left with the not so good ones, because they allow themselves to be overwhelmed with unrealistic expectations. So they had good intentions when they started off, but once they are overwhelmed, they get big headed and think they are invincible. But by a far margin, they are still better than lawyers (can see for yourself what is happening in Fiji’s judicial system) or economists – raised tax!
Sergeant, fact is leaders only.
To what extent? Only to lead a group.
Their intellectuality is poor apart from the fancy signatures they put on paper.
For lawyers, there are some very good ones out there,who doesn’t want to be painted with the same brush.
Many who were or are associated with government have lost their ethics.
Problem today ,is the current ones who have been “hand ” picked and failed at some stage are either nephews, cousins, family or from the same province and village.
There is one who had issues in NZ is leading an enquiry.
There is no vetting system in place with this government.
They only find out through media.
There are some who are good but only there for financial advantage .
Some have changed sides after fall of Aiyaz.
For per capita,I think Fiji has the highest number of lawyers.
Both wankers rolling in gibberish nonsensical bullshit had a rip roaring time trying to please one another last night.
Rabuka was again off with the fairies telling fantastic tales laced with myths and legends to distract the fijian public and vuji Narayan letting him get away with the wanking cos rabuka via biman just agreed to give CFL and Mai tv more than 1.5 million dollars each annually for propaganda work.
Vuji Narayan knows rabaku is an unhinged clown who could withdraw the money from CFL if he doesnt suck rabuka and bimans tool a couple time a week. So expect many more of these nauseating “orgy time” sessions between rabuka, biman , Fred, vuji, and stan.
Vuji has no shame. He and pupu Parkinson worked very hard to discredit fijifirst as much as possible before the elections, and they complained about lack of media freedom?
Vuji, Stan, and Fred are prostitutes who will sell themselves to the highest bidder, give good head, and then bend over for seconds.
Shameless c**ts.
GD, it would certainly be a more lively show if you were hosting it, although it may be very dusty with all the politicians running a mile when asked to be interviewed by you ! 🙂
Silly Rambo wants to ammend the constitution. His government’s time will be up by the time all unnecessary consultations and what not are completed. A futile waste of taxpayers money and government resources.
Rather focus on the growing HIV crisis, drug epidemic and poverty. Changing and inserting a few clauses won’t improve on any of the above issues.
BTW GD, you should start your own podcast. It will be a hit!
There are no hard hitting, courageous and respected journalists in fiji.
Wishing for true investigative journalists is just wishful. All tertiary education fees for this study in fiji is not returning the yields.
Fiji has been an independent country for 55 years. The journalists and the people have been fiddling with Rambo’s ba!!s for 38 of those 55 years…
‘….fiddling with Rambo’s ba!!s for 38 of those 55 years…..’
We need to give credit where credit is due as always. To be fair, some have gone even further than merely fiddling!
You guys are barking up the wrong tree!
He gets his directive directly from William Parkinson!
Vijay Narayan’s recent “Straight Talk” with Sitiveni Rabuka, PM of Fiji, can be best described as laughable and a glossing of Rabuka’s failures and incompetence as a leader.
The type of questions asked were simply to enable Rabuka to give general answers. The questions were designed to make Rabuka look good with his storytelling.
The interview lacked relevant and direct questions about the state of the economy, law and order, conflict within the coalition government, deteriorating infrastructure, and the social sector and many other failures of the Coalition Government.
CFL bosses should seriously review Vijay’s performance and ask him to learn from BBC’s “Hardtalk” hosted by Stephen Sakur and interviews conducted by Peirs Morgan, British presenter, journalist, and media personality. CFL should look at someone neutral who can conduct such interviews professionally and without bias.