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Commodore Josaia V. Bainimarama Prime Minister and Minister for Public Service, People’s Charter for Change, Information, Provincial Development, Indigenous and Multi-Ethnic Affairs Address to the National Council for Building a Better Fiji (NCBBF), Inaugural Meeting held on 16th January 2008 Your Excellency the President of the Republic of the Fiji Islands Your Grace, Archbishop Petero Mataca, Co-Chairman of the National Council Excellencies Distinguished Members of the National Council for Building a Better Fiji Ladies and Gentlemen Ni Sa Bula Vinaka, Namaste, and a Very Good Morning to You All. I take this opportunity to also welcome you. My sincere gratitude to you, for accepting the invitation by His Excellency, the President, to serve as a member of the National Council for Building a Better Fiji. I am greatly encouraged by your presence here this morning. The foresight and courage that you have demonstrated, in coming on board the Peoples Charter initiative, affirms your commitment, as a leader, to place to the forefront, the interest of our Nation; to be part of a process that seeks to transform Fiji, towards better governance, sustainable parliamentary democracy, equity, stability, peace, and progress. Two weeks ago, we passed over a threshold of time – the ending of yet another year, and to now, the beginning of a new one. But the year 2007 was not an ordinary one for Fiji. It was a year marked by turmoil but also momentous opportunities. I am very much mindful of that. For my part, I am disappointed with the amount of progress we made. Indeed we can, and must, learn from the past. But we must not obsessively live in it! We must move on, take responsibility, and make a conscious effort to work together, to constructively contribute to changing our country’s situation, sustainably, for the better. Ladies and Gentlemen, to say that we, as a National Council, have a challenging task ahead of us, is a massive understatement. In fact our task is both mammoth and complex. But it is not an impossible one for us to achieve. His Excellency, the President has outlined some of the challenges. Let me add to that, focussing in particular on the things which, hitherto, have thwarted the orderly progress and development of our nation. As a small island economy, highly vulnerable to external pressures, we at the same time are faced with our own, man-made domestic challenges. This includes a tradition of leadership that has generally been more self-serving, and which has tended to thrive on mongering fear as well as insecurity in the minds of our ordinary citizens. Our Nation has become fragmented as a result of the divisive, race-based politics. The lack of accountability and transparency in our political governance has been a major problem. These have severely hindered our progress as a nation. Although we have been aware of these problems over the years, they have been swept under the mat without any genuine effort to tackle them. It is imperative that we tackle our deep-rooted problems urgently, openly, honestly, and with due effectiveness. The coup- related experiences of 1987, 2000, and indeed again in 2006, raised some very fundamental questions. They bring to the fore issues of good governance, democracy, race relations and the meaning of our nationhood. If we are to move forward together as one people, and a nation, we must take a holistic and inclusive approach in addressing our problems. We rely upon our economy not only for our survival and sustenance but also for our progress and prosperity. But our economy has been on a path of decline, marked by very low to negative growth. Public sector debt is unsustainably high, and the level of investment remains insufficient to lift and sustain the growth of our economy. A higher level of sustainable economic growth is necessary to generate more employment; to reduce poverty. Over one-third of our population currently live in conditions of deprivation and poverty. In 1970, when we achieved independence, our future as a nation was filled with promise and potential. At that time, in terms of per capita incomes, Fiji was in the same league as Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand. Today, 38 years later, Singapore, for instance, boasts a per capita income around US $ 40,000. This compares to Fiji’s meagre US $4,000, one-tenth now that of Singapore. Yet Fiji has a land area that is 26 times larger than Singapore. The United Nations Human Development Index ( HDI ) provides a measurement of the average achievements in a country covering three basic dimensions of development: i) life expectancy at birth, ii) knowledge and education measured by the adult literacy rate and the combined primary, secondary, and tertiary gross enrolment ratio, and iii) a decent standard of living, measured by per capita income at purchasing power parity. In the international HDI rankings, in 1975, Fiji was placed 42 out of 101 countries. Twenty years later, Fiji’s ranking had dropped to 63 out of 144 countries. Today, Fiji is ranked 92 out of 177 countries. This is Fiji’s overall track record: instead of progressing, we have been regressing, falling backwards. This has to be a matter of great concern to us all and we must rectify this situation. The critical question we need to ask is where did we go wrong, and why? But more importantly, we need to ask where do we, as a Nation, go from here? Ladies and Gentlemen The objective of the Peoples Charter initiative is to rebuild Fiji into a non-racial, culturally vibrant, united, well-governed, and truly democratic nation; a nation that will seek progress and prosperity, through merit-based equality of opportunity, and peace. The process of formulating the draft Peoples Charter is itself the beginning of a journey, which we start today, with this first meeting of the National Council. In this journey, we seek not only the restoration of sustainable parliamentary democracy but to steer our nation to a brighter, more stable and secure destiny. In doing so, we will need to ask the hard questions, and also take some tough decisions. To rebuild a better Fiji, we need to make sure that the foundations for our political, economic and social governance are re-laid more solidly, and on a firmer and sustainable footing. We must address our deep-rooted problems with honesty and courage. In our deliberations in this Council, and also in the National Task Teams and the various Working Groups, we should engage ourselves fully, freely and without fear. I must assure the members of this Council, and indeed also all the people of Fiji, that nothing concerning the proposed Peoples Charter has been cast in stone. It is the responsibility of this National Council to develop a draft Peoples Charter. The proposed Charter will not replace our Constitution. Also, it will be recalled that the initial draft on the Peoples Charter proposal was silent on the issue of the role of Fiji’s Military as a key institution in our nation. Going forward, the National Council may consider setting up a Working Group to specifically address this issue. As the current head of Fiji’s Military, I am very much aware of the concerns regarding what is now being widely described as the “ coup culture” in Fiji. Fiji must rid itself of this reputation; and for us to be able to do this, we must address the fundamental problems and issues. This is what the Peoples Charter proposal seeks to do. We are presented now with a momentous opportunity. Fiji’s people are looking today to you, their leaders, for direction, for answers, for hope. This Council must manifest a boldness of character that will inspire, breathe life into, and give real meaning, to the Peoples Charter proposal. These are challenging times for our nation. With your active support and contribution, I am confident that we will respond to these challenges. Strengthened by our diversity and by working closely, shoulder to shoulder, let us come together, to build a better Fiji for all. May God Bless You; and May God Bless Fiji. ----------- |
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