Much has been made of the appointments of military people to senior government positions, normally the preserve of civil society. Few people will feel comfortable with such appointments but not all will agree with Coupfourpointfive that they are "a clear indication that the military-backed regime will hold on to power for as long as it likes and that the 2014 election timeline is a façade like Bainimarama’s previous commitments and promises."
There are, of course, other, less sinister, reasons for the (apparently numerous) military appointments. I list four, in no particular order of importance.
- Leaders tend to appointment people they can trust. Most prime ministers appointment their own ministers. Many of Fiji's former senior civil servants appointed under the previous regime have been openly anti-Government.
- Military-led governments "naturally" appoint military people. They're part of an established team and appointees respond more readily to orders from the top. But a surprisingly large number of Fiji's senior officials have no military background (see below.)
- There is an acute shortage of suitable civil society alternatives, partly because some people do not wish to work with Government.
- The probable main reason for the shortage, however, has an external cause. Anyone who accepts a senior appointment (and their families!) will be refused travel permits to enter Australia and NZ. This is a major deterrent to people who otherwise would have access to overseas medical care, education, and visits to their relatives already living abroad.
The relaxation of these bans is probably the single most important step Australia and NZ can take to improve public service governance in Fiji. It would make:
- More credible civilian appointments possible, passing the baton to Bainimarama.
- Demonstrate a more realistic and informed response to the Fiji situatio.
- Most importantly, it would stop depriving Fiji of the important administrative skills so essential to good government -- and good governance.
Finally, it is noted that Government has considerably reduced the excessively large number of government departments under the Qarase regime, mainly by merging responsibilities, and that many of the present appointments are in an "acting" capacity.
The most recent official figures show that 9 of the 31 ministers and permanent secretaries (Fijian 21, Indo-Fijian 7, Other 3) have a military background, although three of them had retired from the RFMF some years ago, and a further three are responsible for defence, prisons and the police, arguably areas in which they may have some expertise. The full list of ministers and permanent secretaries can be seen by clicking here.
4 comments:
Would you or anyone with any 'nous' wish to work within a government which has consistently not been allowed access to those very countries which might assist Fiji fight a 'Cabal of Corruption'? Very few are prepared, have the courage or the long-term commitment to do this. What is more, it take great strength and good health to do it. Let me assure you. If you get sick, you are obliged to travel to India? Gloves are off now. Those of us who choose to 'stay out' will continue fighting outside of government but with Military Men watching our backs. With maybe around 5,000 civil servants on the payroll who are not in reality part of the establishment - have you any idea of what we are facing? It is a daunting as Afghanistan - yes - and it is right on the doorstep of Australia and New Zealand and was propped up by their failed judgements concerning the major players: Qarase and his circle of abusers. If you wish to assist, continue with your blog and all your sensible comment but please, please get us a removal of travel bans and some access to nearby Healthcare. Fighting all this is finishing some of us off!
Vinaka
S.O.E.
A follow up to S.O.E.
In wartime, the SOE worked and reported ONLY to PM Winston Churchill some of us may recall? That gives an idea of the age of those who are called upon to serve Fiji at this most demanding time of Fiji's History. What must be done can only be done with the expertise, the loyalty and the readiness to serve at short notice of the Military. None of us is able to do what we have to do without military back-up. The Fiji Police - as before - is not without its short-comings and now that corruption is being 'taken on' with evidence coming through, it is essential to have military working to reinforce the Police. Were this not so, then nothing could be achieved. Australia failed to 'get this' and I have even heard the military referred to as a 'Green Cancer' - in private conversation. Those who speak in this way have no conception of what they are talking about or dealing with on the ground in Fiji at this time. Yet, in some instances, it is nationals of NZ and Australia who have aided and abetted corruption here and not in a small way: in an orchestrated and programmed way. Organised criminal conduct should receive overseas co-operation from any responsible government adjacent to Fiji. We are only human beings and we cannot endure forever without requisite support. My six years' experience in the Western Division is a testament to what I say. I am prepared to make this public, eventually, in any forum internationally if need be. (Former Chairperson - Crimestoppers West)
Your points 3 & 4 cannot be allowed to pass uncommented.
"There is an acute shortage of suitable civil society alternatives, partly because some people do not wish to work with Government."
Only 'some people'? Perhaps public support is not as widespread as Bainimarama and his fans would like to believe.
And now for the bogeyman: travel bans. These may be a niusance, but they do show up the very real lack of faith people have in the current regime. They would rather keep their escape options open than throw in their lot with a government they 'believe in'.
Medical care and education are hardly insurmountable problems: India seems to be getting a fair bit of Fiji's medical insurance money already. Education similarly need not be concentrated in NZ & AU.
The visiting friends & relatives is also a straw man argument: there is nothing stopping these from visiting Fiji.
Can we stop acting as if the travel bans are the reason for a lack of public involvement. Apart from 2 examples the IG like to wave around, they are not and never have been a major factor. If upstanding, capable people in Fiji really believed in what the regime is doing (and trusted the regime to provide alternate medical and educational options) they would join.
They do not join ... and rather than examine the real reasons for this lack of buy-in, the regime (and it's fans) blame Australia and New Zealand.
Patently ridiculous!
NZ PM's choice of the word 'lamentable' to describe the unlikelihood of Fiji being returned 'any time soon' to democracy should be noted. But, it appears to me that he used it in the wrong context. Lamentable, is how one would describe the prolonged failure of both NZ and Australia to come to any realisation that effectively Fiji is having to deal with an insurgency. Is that too strong a workd? No, I think not. It is an insurgent cabal of propagators of corruption over the period of twenty years. This corruption has been propagated and propelled by vehicles which have included: terrorism/racist-supremacist propaganda/religious hatred and fundamentalism/flagrant impunity and breaches of the rule of law. If the NZ Prime Minister can come up with a better terminology: please feel free to do so. But that is how it seems to me and I live here and have done for almost forty years. If my rights have been infringed by this and by a failure of both NZ and Australia to fully and properly determine what was going on in their own backyard, then how many more of us have suffered likewise. The day will come when a full accounting of such failure will be demanded. I shall be in the sharp end of such a demand and when one comes to imagining how nearly an invasion took place to defend those who perpetrated so much corruption in our midst, the mind does more than boggle. The very least that we expect now is your full co-operation to make amends for your past failings in our regard. We would expect you to assist us fully in capacity-building. An end to travel bans, smart sanctions and other tom-foolery. Get real and smart and Get Onboard!
Post a Comment