by published 6 August 2001

It is not going to be an easy task. No reconciliation process can succeed unless we face honestly the true reasons for the armed overthrow of the People’s Coalition Government and those who were behind it. 

The People’s Coalition Government was a clean, caring government sensitive to the needs and aspiration of the ordinary people. It did nothing that justified its violent overthrow by terrorist elements.

Vested interest groups, of all races, made up of a number of defeated politicians and some big business interests felt threatened by Labour’s policies on social justice, equality, good governance and a corruption-free society. They worked on the emotions of a section of Fijian society and enlisted the support of renegade elements in the army and the police to stage a coup.

The forces opposed to change wanted business as usual - corrupting government officials, getting deals done through underhand means, evading taxes and benefiting from the public purse. They wanted to keep the political system in their hands and politicians under their control.

It is now well accepted that unlike the coup of 14 May, 1987, the May 19 insurrection lacked popular support. The racial riot of May 19 in the city of Suva, the attacks on the residents of Muaniweni, Dawasamu and  other areas of Tailevu were orchestrated to create an air of instability and to instil fear.

The truth behind what happened must be disclosed if our nation is to learn from its mistakes.Too many innocent people have suffered and a number of lives have been lost because of what happened.  

We will instigate an independent inquiry into last year’s acts of terrorism focused on ascertaining  the real instigators and their motives. The inquiry will also recommend precautionary measures necessary to avert such catastrophe in future.

A number of loyal, innocent soldiers and policemen died in the course of duty defending the State.

Hundreds of others, victims of orchestrated acts of terrorism, lost their property when houses were torched or suffered personal injury through torture and violence. Families in Mauniweni, Dawasamu and Dreketi in the north were forced to flee  in fear. Many lost their homes and farms as a result.

 They were all innocent victims of the terrorism that gripped our nation. The State must compensate families that suffered.       

Five Year Plan   

As we unfold to the nation our five year  development strategies, we must make it clear that our ability to deliver depends very much on the resource available to post-coup Fiji. Our focus will therefore be on rebuilding the economy as fast as we can. But it presupposes political stability and respect for rule of law. 

·         FLP  has taken court action to challenge the re-imposition of VAT on basic food items by the Qarase regime. We will once again remove VAT from basic food items, as we did when in government.  

·         To bring down the cost of essential items, the Labour-led PCG had imposed price controls on 17 essential household items. The controls were removed by the insensitive Qarase regime. We will reinstate price controls on these items. 

·         We will restore and increase the $200,000 fund PCG had allocated for overseas medical treatment for the poor. This was removed by the Qarase regime.

·         Family Assistance Allowance will be reviewed from time to time  

Women

We will put in place a special programme to help abandoned and underprivileged women acquire skills to become self-employed. Money from the Micro-Finance programme will be made available to help them start small businesses.

School dropouts and street kids 

Similar programmes to inculcate skills will be put in place for school dropouts and street kids. Centres will be set up in each district for boys and girls. Approaches will be made to overseas governments to provide resources and technical assistance for these centres.

The move will take young people off the streets and address the growing problem of juvenile delinquency and unemployed youths.

Old Age Pension -

In pursuance of our policy to look after the aged and the poor, we will introduce an old age pension scheme for the elderly who are without adequate income to provide for their basic needs. 

Fiji National Provident Fund

Benefits under the Fiji National Provident Fund will be improved with:

·         Employer/employee contributions progressively increased in consultation with workers and employers representatives to a ceiling of  12.% each from the present rate of 8%.

·         Legislation will be amended to allow members to withdraw savings in order to finance viable small business schemes or to invest in shares

·         Medical insurance cover for workers and their immediate family members will be provided through FNPF. The cover will include both local and overseas treatment.   

·         In keeping with our election promise we appointed a high powered Education Commission to review our educational policies with emphasis on indigenous education

·         To help poor students, examination fees were waived for students sitting the Fiji Intermediate, Fiji Eighth Year and the Fiji Junior examinations.

·         Fee-free grant extended to Form Five students in rural areas and those in under-resourced urban schools

·         A $50,000 grant was made for a  Fijian Education Unit to review and enhance Fijian educational programmes and activities.

·         $1m Student Loan Scheme set up to assist poor students get tertiary education

·         $1m for urgent maintenance works in government schools

·         $1.3 million for upgrading facilities at the Queen Victoria and Ratu Kadavulevu schools

·         $4.5 million for the upgrading of non government rural schools and insufficiently resourced urban schools

·         We increased the allocation for multi-ethnic scholarships. This will be further increased. 

What more we will do:

·         To help equip poor students for school we will make an annual allowance of  $50 per child in primary school and $100 per child in secondary school. The allowance will be made available through the school system for students  from families  living below the poverty line

·         To reduce the burden of school bus fares on parents, we will deregulate licensing of school buses, where necessary, without compromising safety standards;

·         We will continue with our policies on education for all with particular emphasis on training for job skills and  information technology

Indigenous Education – We will bring ethnic Fijian students into the main stream of education to provide opportunity for them to work in a fully competitive environment. We will also ensure constant monitoring of educational standards, home environment and performance levels of Fijian students. This will be done through a special unit set up in the Ministry of Education.

We will continue the special assistance provided for Fijian education in the Budget.

The teaching of Fijian and Hindi languages will be encouraged and made compulsory over time. 

Housing and squatter

         settlements

Statistics show that 20% of Fiji’s population live in  single room dwellings and that approximately 50% of all houses are occupied by an  extended family unit… These are indicators of an acute shortage of housing in Fiji.    More than 25,000  of our poor people are living in pathetic lean-to shacks as squatters. Many of them have no piped water, no electricity and no sanitary facilities. More  than half of these unfortunate people live in and around Suva. 

One of the main reasons for the mushrooming of squatter settlements is a lack of affordable housing for the poor and the low income worker. It is estimated that close on 15% of Suva’s population live in squatter settlements.

High interest rates have been the main deterrent to home ownership. Unless rates are reduced, affordable housing will remain just a pipe dream for ordinary workers.

To assist as many of our people as possible to own decent homes, the Fiji Labour Party will:

·         continue its policy to bring interest rates on Housing Authority home loans down to 6% for all income groups

·          give a $1000 grant to first home owners to encourage home ownership

·         A Labour Government will upgrade the condition of Public Rental homes to convert them into single home units. Present single room rental facilities under the PRB are in a deplorable state

·         We will continue with the Village Housing upgrading scheme introduced by the PC Govt.

·         Squatter settlements will be developed and converted into housing estates with all services and amenities

·         We will also continue our policy of providing relief to a worker unable to meet repayments to HA because of job loss. We will help save the home by allowing a grace period of 6 months when the home loan will be frozen without interest.   

    PCG increased Budget allocation for Health by $14 million 

·         A study will be undertaken to establish a National Health Scheme for the aged and the poor.

·         Management of specialist and divisional hospitals such as CWM, Lautoka, Labasa and Nadi will be contracted out to private health care providers to raise the standard of curative health care. There will be no job losses.

·         Contracting out management will bring in expertise and technology not usually available through the public service system.

·         More specialist doctors will be recruited under special arrangements to overcome skills scarcity in this area.

·         Adequate funds will be provided for the upgrading of facilities and urgent maintenance work in hospitals and health centres.

·         We will move the current focus on curative health care to emphasise primary or preventive health care. A vigorous campaign will be directed against increasing incidence of substance abuse such as yaqona, alcohol, drugs, cigarettes which are major causes of illnesses among our people.

Focus will also be placed on the preventive aspects of lifestyle diseases, such as hypertension and coronary diseases, diabetes and kidney failure. The campaign to create awareness will  be undertaken at school and community levels. 

·         We will establish a Venture Capital Fund to stimulate the development and growth of small and medium sized businesses. Fledgeling entrepreneurs with viable business propositions will be assisted through the Fund for their capital needs on favourable terms and conditions.

·         We will continue with our policy of bringing down the cost of doing business here by reducing telecommunications and electricity charges - the two largest cost components.

·         Bank charges and fees will be brought under surveillance to ease the cost of doing business. Bank fees and charges in Fiji are higher than what the foreign banks here charge in their own countries.

·         Interest rates will be monitored to ensure that the margin spread between the lending and deposit rates is maintained at an acceptable level.

·         We will promote transparency in business dealings by requiring full disclosure to create an even playing field for all. 

·         To discourage improper and unethical business practices we will require full compliance with the Fair Trading Act

·         Infrastructure upgrading will be undertaken through a partnership between the public and private sectors. The partnership with private sector is necessary for capital injection and technology. The continued role of the State will be to facilitate its social obligations — that is job creation, the need to ensure affordable services to all sections of society and to make modern amenities available to the people in villages and rural settlements .       

·         Private sector partnerships will be invited to develop and improve health services, roads and bridges, and the supply of electricity, water, and telecommunications.

·         Jobs will be secured through a vigorous expansionary programme.

·         A major highlight of our development strategy will be the raising of long term bonds to finance the upgrading of education, health and infrastructure. It will enable upgrading and improvements to facilities to be undertaken immediately instead of having to wait for the normal budgetary process and the availability of finance. Such a scheme will relieve pressure on the Budget each year, freeing up funds for other urgent  programmes

Infrastructure is an important indicator of a country’s progress and development. It also plays a significant role in determining investor confidence. We had placed major emphasis on infrastructure development, substantially increasing the allocation for it. 

FLP will continue this emphasis on infrastructure development so that people can enjoy safe roads, clean and uninterrupted supply of piped water and easy access to electricity and telephones which are no longer considered luxuries but  necessities in a growing modern society.

Tax Relief

·         We will aim to progressively reduce top rates of personal and company tax from the present

       35% to 30%.

·         The tax threshold for those exempt from paying tax will be progressively raised to $8000 from the current $6500.

·         To encourage savings, tax exemption on interest income of up to $200 a year will be retained.

·         The existing Customs Duty and tax concession regime to tax free industries will be reviewed and rationalized to achieve equity through a level playing field.

Tourism emerged as one of the most dynamic sectors of the economy during the 12 months of the People’s Coalition Government. We promoted tourism as a major avenue of development to create jobs and show investor confidence in

 the country.

We proved we have the right mix of policies, the dynamism and the vision needed to attract big investors  into the country.  Close on $300 million in hotel investment projects were poised for takeoff. It would have created some 3000 jobs which were lost because of the coup:

·         3 major hotels at Denarau - the Hilton Fiji, Accor Air Pacific Hotel and stage 2 of time share apartments of Trendwest were ready to get off the ground.

·          In addition, the Lomolomo Beach Resort was on the drawing board

·         The PC Government bought a $25 million equity in the Natadola Resort project. We also allocated  $10 million in Budget 2000 to develop infrastructure, in particular roads and water works for Natadola.

·         We moved to repossess the decadent Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva to restore it to its former colonial grandeur.

·          

What more we will do:

·         We will opt for an open skies policy to attract more airlines to fly into Fiji.

·         We will commission a special study on the development of the island of Ovalau and Taveuni as a tourist destination

·         Existing aid and concession packages to hotel investors will be continued

·         Additionally, a special fund will be established to assist and encourage participation of Fijians in the tourism industry through development of eco-tourism activities etc on land owned by them. This is to help them generate income earning activities through development of  their resources.  

Our plans to open up areas in the hilly interior to eco tourism projects which would have boosted income earning opportunities for remote villagers in the interior was interrupted by the coup. These areas of our tourism industry are undeveloped and largely unexplored. We will encourage development in these areas.

Tropical Fiji has a vast array of beautiful flora and fauna, many of which are unique to our islands. These will be nurtured and cultivated as part of our plan to  develop nature parks and gardens (refer to section on environment) which will attract tourists and provide recreational facilities for our people.   

·         Certain provisions of the Land Transport Authority Act introduced by the SVT Government are very unpopular. In view of the public protest over exorbitant fines and penalties under the Act, the FLP will review the Act.

·         The public transport system will be deregulated to overcome transport problems in  rural areas. We will look at the best available mode of transport to meet the needs of  rural people.   

·         Mini Buses will be legalised and regulated in the interest of public safety

FLP believes the safety of the travelling public is of prime importance. The existing system will be reviewed and reorganised to ensure public safety and environmental standards are enforced.  

But the industry will not be able to survive were it to rely solely on the free market price for sugar. It is the heavy price subsidy by the European Union that keeps us afloat.

By the year 2007 the EU subsidy will run out. This means we have to achieve well before then, efficiency and productivity levels which would sustain the industry on world market prices. It is a mammoth task requiring huge investments but that will not come until the long term viability and prospects of the industry can be assured.

The problems that plague and threaten it are:

·         uncertainties over lease renewals and

·         incompetent management resulting in frequent milling and other operational problems. The Fiji Sugar Corporation is facing huge losses of about $21 million current with accumulated losses running close to $35 million. If this is not arrested now, the industry will kill itself.  

We will move decisively to tackle management problems. Performance based management contracts will be put in place in each of the mills which will operate as stand alone units. When the long term future of the industry is assured, cane farmers, landowners and mill workers will be invited to take up shares as co-owners of the FSC.

In its short 12 months in office, the Labour-led People’s Coalition Government initiated several very popular measures to help cane farmers in difficulty:

·         True to our promise, we scrapped legislation requiring farmers to pay back the $27 million cash grant and crop rehabilitation loan provided as drought relief in 1998/1999. The write-off of this loan benefited all cane farmers including some 5000 Fijian cane growers. 

·         The $28,000 grant to each evicted tenant farmer to help towards rehabilitation and resettlement of the family. Close to 250 farmers, Indian and Fijian, benefited from this scheme before it was scrapped by the Qarase regime.

·         A $10,000 assistance package through the Fiji Sugar Corporation and the Sugar Cane Growers Council to incoming indigenous Fijian farmers who wanted to take up cane farming. It is this same scheme that the Qarase regime is now offering  Fijian farmers.

In addition we will:

·         abolish drainage board levy. The State will take over the function of maintaining agricultural drainage.

·         assist farmers to enhance production. To facilitate this, efforts will be made to bring down the cost of fertiliser and other farm chemicals.

·         soft loans will be provided to enhance productivity and good husbandry practices.

·         cane farmers with small holdings will be encouraged and assisted through the soft loan scheme to diversify into other high income cash crops 

Efficient transportation of cane has become a problem that needs to be addressed urgently:

·         We will upgrade the rail system. At present rail trucks are inadequate to meet demand. Rolling stock are in a pathetic state of disrepair. Finance will be made available for these capital works without it being a burden on cane farmers or the FSC.

·         FSC will be required to diversify into other agro-based industries. This will provide income support to farmers during the slack season. The State will assist in getting the diversification  programme off the ground.

·         FSC is in urgent need of new capital injection. We will examine the best possible way to assist in this regard.

Industry Institutions

 The Sugar Industry Act will be reviewed. The role and effectiveness of the Sugar Commission, Sugar Industry Tribunal and the Sugar Cane Growers Council will be re-examined. The Commission and Council will be fully funded by the State thus easing the burden on cane farmers and FSC.

Land owners will be encouraged to renew leases. Where this is not done, outgoing farmers will be assisted through the rehabilitation grant to pursue new opportunities for livelihood.

Incoming landowners will, likewise, be helped through the farming assistance scheme mentioned earlier.

Land as a resource is vital to the development of an agricultural country like Fiji. Our full potential for land development must be realised if we are to boost rural incomes and, in particular, improve the quality of life of indigenous people in rural areas.

Yet, successive governments since independence have failed to come up with an enlightened policy on land, hiding behind the excuse that it was too sensitive to touch. It has not been viewed as an economic asset except in the development of sugar industry during the colonial era, and some hotel ventures.

A sensible land use policy, based on the premise that ownership of Fijian land is fully protected, such as that envisaged in our 1999 manifesto, can do a lot to raise the quality of life of villagers.   

Fiji has vast areas of vacant land which can be utilised for the production of commercial crops and fruits, market gardening, livestock raising, horticulture and aquaculture.

With proper direction and assistance unimproved land can be converted into intensive, small-scale, family based units of production. Where feasible and appropriate, agro-based industries will be set up to provide jobs and a ready market for produce.

Since 1987, and particularly under the deliberate policies of the previous SVT government, Fiji neglected agricultural development.

 The result was deterioration in rural conditions, a sharp decline in rural incomes and increased rural-urban migration by people seeking low-paid jobs in towns and cities.

Labour’s intentions to introduce a Land Use Commission was to improve incomes of the villagers and landowners through sustainable and proper use of land now lying idle.

Land has for decades been used by unscrupulous politicians as a weapon to whip up Fijian emotions and play on their fears. Such unfounded fears have prevented the Fijian people from realising the full value and potential of  their land assets.

The indigenous Fijian must realise that while emotional attachment to land is understandable, it does not translate into bread and butter.

Land lying idle brings no income to the owners. It must be developed and put to productive use to generate income.

         “Land has for decades been used by unscrupulous politicians as a weapon to whip up

              Fijian emotions and play on their fears.”

The present attitude of the NLTB management is proving to be the biggest obstacle to the betterment of Fijian people. It’s stance over land in the past three years or so, has turned many investors away and given native land a bad image in Fiji. 

NLTB management’s hostile and intractable attitude on leases is driving tenant farmers who view investment on native land as insecure and unsafe,   away from land. 

A land tenure system cannot be imposed on the people if they are unwilling to accept it. Yet, NLTB management persists with its counter productive attitude.    

Any community owning the magnitude of rich natural resources that the Fijian people own, should not be lagging behind in economic prosperity.

The truth is that Fijian institutions like the NLTB and governments in the  past have shown a singular lack of vision in developing these resources to enhance the quality of life of their people.

The NLTB, for example, should be one of the most dynamic and financially healthy institutions in the country yet it is struggling to survive.

It has not tapped even half the potential of the resources the indigenous people own and views with distrust and suspicion any honest attempts by others to help develop these resources for the benefit of the ordinary Fijians.

Unless this distrust is overcome and the Fijian people begin to utilise the full potential of what they own, the picture willremain grim. It is ironical that the real owners of land remain poor while those who administer their assets enjoy a comfortable lifestyle in cities and towns.

Landowners must become more assertive about their rights to decide for themselves how best their resources can and should be utilised to bring them prosperity.      

Fiji Labour Party recognises the need for affirmative action as identified in the 1997 constitution. Our emphasis on poverty alleviation measures will assist all poor people and low paid workers.

However, throughout our manifesto, we have outlined special schemes to assist Fijian people in  education, the improvement of village housing and sanitation and the provision of utilities such as water, electricity and telecommunications.

We have also focused on agricultural and rural development, tourism with particular emphasis on eco-tourism and other income generating avenues  which will improve the lifestyles of ordinary Fijians by providing them opportunities to raise their income levels.

An area of concern to the Fijian people is their lack of participation in business. This has lagged behind on account of their resources remaining largely under-developed or undeveloped. FLP  will address the impediments they continue to face under the existing schemes which have failed to bring the ordinary Fijians into the mainstream of commerce.

This has been due to the institutionalised approach taken so far by those in authority under the guise that the benefits of it will trickle down to ordinary Fijians. In reality these schemes were designed to benefit only the elite in Fijian society.

We believe that the wealth of the indigenous people lies largely in sustainable development of their land, forest, mineral and marine resources, and that there must be an equitable sharing of wealth among the Fijian people themselves.  

We recognise that sound national development can only take place with a fair distribution of benefits between the workers and owners of industry.

This means jobs with decent wages, and safe and secure working environment.

·         We will bring in a national minimum wage, without disturbing the Wages Councils

·         We support a fair and equitable system of arbitration and conciliation. We believe workers are entitled to the full protection of the law.

·         We recognise the importance of trade unions as active partners in development

·         We will ratify and uphold all core  ILO Conventions pertaining to workers rights and security.

Tripartite Forum  - we will continue with our policy to reinstate the Tripartite Forum and broaden its membership to include the agricultural sector. The Forum should play an active part in the formulation of government’s social and economic policies.  

The Labour-led People’s Coalition Government restored the emphasis placed on agricultural development by the Mara government before 1987. Agriculture was sadly neglected under the SVT Government with agricultural exports dropping by $85 million in the five years from 1994 to 1998, falling from $374 million to $289 million.

The People’s Coalition Government revitalised agriculture, bringing about a 19% increase in agricultural output within a short 12 months. Agricultural development is an integral part of  the Fiji Labour Party’s emphasis on enhancing rural incomes through rural development.

We believe opening up land for development in the rural interior will lead to the building of good roads and bridges, the supply of water, electricity and telecommunications to these areas.

Fiji’s towns cannot provide quality jobs for all our people - employment will have to be created through improved land use projects and sustainable use of  marine and timber  resources. 

 In our 12 months in office:

·         We set up a $15 million Agricultural Diversification Programme to boost rural production

·         We revived rice farming and imposed import controls on rice to encourage local rice production

·         We salvaged the Rewa Rice Company at a cost of $4.2 million to buy and distribute locally  grown rice and pay off its debts for imported rice

·         Set up rural market centres to help farmers sell their produce

If re-elected, we intend to contract out supervision of agricultural research, extension and marketing services to internationally recognised institutions to achieve better product variety, higher yields and incomes

The FLP will continue to give priority to the revitalisation of agriculture in areas such as rice, poultry, beef, tropical fruits and  vegetables and other agro-based industries. We will promote horticulture and floriculture to further develop Fiji’s potential in agriculture and create self-employment for our people.

Irrigation schemes will be considered to address the adverse effects of  drought on agricultural production in the western and northern parts of Fiji.

The independence of the judiciary and its credibility was seriously compromised following the coup of May 19 and developments that have taken place since.

 The role of some judges and certain magistrates in political events after the coup and in the handling of certain cases brought before them have incurred heavy criticism from the Fiji Law Society and the rest of the local  and international legal fraternity.

The FLP wants to see the independence of the judiciary and respect for the rule of law restored.

We will allocate resources to the judiciary, the DPPs office and the State law office to remove the inefficiency and incompetence that have characterised these institutions for some time.

We had put in place measures to speed up the court process and clear up the massive backlog of cases. This will be continued.

Fiji’s security forces need to regain lost credibility. Their failure to act in time to contain the terrorist activities of May 19 and thereafter has raised doubts about their impartiality and loyalty. The professionalism and independence of the security forces need to be restored if Fiji is to enjoy lasting peace and democracy.

The army

The involvement and support of  the Fiji Military Forces in usurping the mandate of the people in particular, has become a matter of  serious disquiet. It planned and executed the two coups in 1987 and some elements were the effective force behind the May 19 insurrection of parliament.

George Speight’s attempt to takeover Government failed but the army completed the process put in place by Speight, making sure it appointed its own people to run the government, after abrogating the 1997 Constitution and forcing out of office the constitutionally appointed President, Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara.   

The military abrogated the constitution and imposed an illegal regime on the people, using the breakdown in law and order as an excuse for doing so.        When it was ready to deal with the rebels once it had a government of its choice in place, it moved swiftly and with a vengeance to quell the rebel forces..   

The army has now given assurances it will uphold the constitution and the elected government. The nation which has suffered deeply as a result of the violence and mayhem of last year, expects such assurances to be honoured and the choice of the people respected by the security forces.

To be able to do this, the army needs to crack down on rebel forces within its ranks. The November 2 mutiny last year is a clear indication that the army is split and its loyalty to the elected government cannot be guaranteed. 

   Fiji’s foreign policy must be guided by what is in its best interest.  As a sovereign nation, Fiji must exercise its right to pursue an independent foreign policy.

    We will take steps to redeem our lost reputation in the region on account of events that followed the May 19 insurrection.   

    We will ensure Fiji’s commercial interests are promoted with vigour through its diplomatic missions, and strengthen links with international and regional organisations.

    We will concentrate all our resources in securing maximum development assistance and continued accessibility for our major exports to the EU.

     We will continue our friendly relations with our neighbouring island states and with Australia and  New Zealand. We value also our relations with all nations and organisations which provide us technical assistance and trade opportunities.

     At the same time Fiji will actively pursue alliances with other vulnerable economies around the world to combat the adverse impact of globalisation and trade liberalisation policies on our economy. 

National and municipal laws and  regulations on pollution control are outdated and badly in need of updating. We will bring legislation in line with the expanding industrial technology so that they meet with the need to  keep our waterways and the air  around us safe and clean.

Our rivers and creeks have become clogged and polluted. As  a result they are both unsightly and prone to quick flooding. We will keep rivers and creeks constantly dredged and cleaned. Our waterways must be restored to their original natural beauty. 

Tropical Fiji is blessed with natural beauty. Our rugged, mountainous interior offers areas of pristine beauty and healthy recreation.

We will focus on developing nature parks and walkways etc. both for the enjoyment of our people and as a particular attraction for tourists.

Fiji has a beautiful  array of flora and fauna, some of which are unique to our islands. These will be specially cultivated and nurtured to provide points of focal interest to these parks and gardens. We will continue with steps we had initiated to protect the unique beauty of our tropical reefs and corals and other marine lives..

We will strengthen the role of the National Trust in preserving our national heritage.

We will ensure that development of Fiji’s natural resources is only carried out after careful consideration of the environmental consequences and that the harnessing of mineral, forest and marine resources are regulated by appropriate environmental conservation legislation.

We will act to contain the problem of industrial and traffic pollution, particularly in urban areas.

Local Government

Fiji’s towns and cities are in a state of neglect and deterioration. They look unkempt and dirty and are sadly lacking in amenities for the public. Ratepayers are just  not getting value for money despite regular hikes in rates.

There has been little development of recreational facilities, parks and gardens in the past decade or so.

FLP believes the existing local government system is fraught with inefficiencies, corruption, and laxity in enforcing regulations and by-laws and promoting the interests of the ratepayers.

We will carry out a review of the present system to bring about changes to ensure maximum benefit to ratepayers.

 END