Prime Minister, Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama has stressed that the next elections will be held in Fiji in 2014 and no amount of pressure from Australia, New Zealand or any other country can change that.
Following the Pacific Islands Forum Ministerial Contact Group meeting in Auckland yesterday, Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said that the group has to engage with Fiji to influence the government on Commodore Bainimarama's current election timeframe. Smith also said that Fiji's situation has worsened with little progress towards elections in 2014.
Speaking to our News Director Vijay Narayan today, Commodore Bainimarama said he can shift the Election Day a few days earlier but the year will not change.
Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama told us that Fiji's Foreign Minister, Ratu Inoke Kubuabola went with good intentions to brief the Forum Group after an invitation from Tonga's Prime Minister and Contact Group Chair, Doctor Feleti Sevele.
He said following the meeting, the comments being made by the Australian and NZ Foreign Ministers shows that there was no good intention on their part. He said it is totally misleading to say that things have worsened in Fiji.
He said based on the public comments by the Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith and NZ Foreign Minister Murray McCully, he questions why they still want to come to Fiji when they have already announced to the world that the situation has worsened in Fiji.
Members of the Pacific Islands Leaders Forum have announced that they will travel to Fiji to see for themselves whether or not the situation has improved in Fiji.
Murray McCully has told the NZ Herald that the situation in Fiji has worsened.
McCully said there were short comings in the Fiji report which are not new ones.
Meanwhile Dr Feleti Sevele said yesterday the group has looked into shifting the Forum base and it had proved too costly.
