NFP: WORKING COMMITTEE MEETING 25 MAY, 2014 1. Party leader, members, supporters and journalists i welcome you warmly to our first working committee meeting since the Party AGM at the end of March. 2. Very much has happened since that day, as the cliché goes one day is a very long time in politics. 3. The matters which i would like to highlight from that period are: a. The electoral decree and other amendment decrees that were implemented on the eve of AGM and it affected us greatly in that it immediately restrained two of our party stalwarts from attending and participating in the AGM Messrs Attar Singh and Pramod Rae. b. I am very pleased to say however that being the NFP stalwart that he is, Mr. Singh resigned his union position (and sacrificed the job he loves and his livelihood) in the last few days to be with us here today and help us all carry the party through to the general elections. Thank you very much Mr. Singh. c. The electoral decree also contains the outline of the conduct of the elections including the ballot paper. d. In all of our consultations with the people of this country and voters abroad, we are met with similar reaction to that ballot
paper one of confusion and horror - that what is a basic political right (as described in the military constitution 2013) is designed to cause confusion, anxiety and barrier to the conduct of free and fair elections. e. That ballot paper which reduces all candidates including the leader of the interim administration to numbers is yet another act of dehumanising the people of this country. f. We are human beings with names, parties, histories, culture, context and background. We are not random numbers. g. The party shares this feeling of bewilderment and has sought legal advice. We will make our intentions on the way forward for us on this matter in the coming days. h. The day after our AGM, the political party of the interim administration was announced with barely attended (by the public) fanfare - in what we believe to be a breach of their own Decree No. 4 of 2013, the political parties registration decree. i. Regardless, that party travelled the country with full media coverage promoting itself and gathering signatures for registration. j. I will not repeat entire passages here but when you have the time, please read the definition of both proposed political party and political party in Section 2 of Decree No. 4 of 2013 and, the prohibition in Section 4 of the same.
k. And of course, an amendment to that decree specifically targets and aims to intimidate the media of coverage of activities of any group holding itself out to be a political party before registration. l. That however did not appear to dampen the spirits of one or two media outlets. Perhaps parliamentary privilege extended to them too on that occasion. m. The political party of the interim administration also made a point of enlisting the support of traditional chiefs around the country. That was quite interesting as the leader of the interim administration told the traditional chiefs of this country to all go and drink homebrew out of sight post his military takeover of the government in December, 2006. n. In addition of course, his administration has been dismantling the Fijian administration apparatus without proper consultations with the stakeholders. o. I will not dwell on the matter as i am quite comfortable in the knowledge of what the people (in all communities) and my relations and extended relations think about all of that. Not very much. p. The last but perhaps the most important matter that has surfaced from our listening tour of various parts of the country is the fear factor which our party leader highlighted in his speech at the AGM.
q. There is real fear out there in the community about disagreeing with the might of the military in this country. r. Unfortunately, the assurances from the recently appointed military commander has not assuaged these fears. We don t have to wonder why. s. The people of this country have shown great resilience in putting their faith in the ballot boxes coup after coup. t. And we can understand why, as human beings there will be anxiety and reluctance after twenty seven years of the coup culture. u. But i want to take this opportunity to say this to the men and women of this country do not give in to bullies. v. It s like being in a playground, no one likes a bully. And when we give in to bullies, they continue as they please. w. Ask yourself, do you like being bullied? I don t and i don t cower to bullies. x. When you reward a coup maker and his supporters, you're cowering to bullies. y. And you re encouraging the other officers in the military camp to think that they can do it too with impunity and this coup culture/cycle will not end.
z. As a result, your wages, cost of living, hospitals, schools, water supply and other utilities will get worse. aa. The leader of the interim administration should be very interested in and supportive of this theme as he may be troubled by the same cycle/culture in the future. bb. Take heart - your vote can stop the coup cycle the alternative is to look forward to life like that which exists in the Central African Republic or Guinea Bissau. cc. And remember, after the elections, don't blame Mr. Bainimarama if he wins - because your vote would have put him there. dd. Just as importantly do not put your faith in multiculturalism and respect for diversity in an institution that is ethnocentric and with no regard for the rule of law. ee. In 1987, they were led by an ethnocentric leader, today their leader professes support for diversity - but please go and view the video of the handover of power to the new commander and see for yourself just how multicultural, diverse and secular that institution is it is not - talk is cheap. ff. And when this coup cycle turns again, and it will if we keep endorsing coup makers we had better pray that the next coup leader is not more volatile or racist.
gg. You see ladies and gentlemen, that is the problem of relying on arbitrariness, lawlessness and the coup-coup cycle. We never know what we re going to get.. hh. And, that same cycle makes investors run for cover ie. no economic progress. ii. The choice is ours let s get this message out to every corner of this country. jj. Vote for no more coups. kk. Vote for economic growth. ll. Vote for respect for indigenous culture and all of the other cultures that make Fiji our home. mm. Vote for peaceful coexistence through dialogue and understanding. nn. Vote for dignity. oo. Vote for the National Federation Party. 4. Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. Tupou Draunidalo President National Federation Party