Meanwhile, the only presentations to which I have access are those by USP's Prof Biman Prasad, who details how Fiji had fallen behind its neighbours since the 2006 coup, and how each coup since 1987 has had a heavy financial cost, and by Mr Barry Whiteside, Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank, who addresses some of Biman's comments.Both presentations were in a pdf format that I cannot easily transcribe (tables and double columns collapse) but these links ( click here for Prasad and Whitehead ) only take moments to download. For readers who may wish to know more about the Reserve Bank, here is their website address. Biman also has a Powerpoint presentaton that can be seen by clicking here and scrolling down.
Given that the Government's Roadmap agenda will be difficult to achieve until the economy performs better, I commend these two presentations to serious readers as essential reading.
3 comments:
Thanks---->
Croz - thanks for that. A number of your bloggers have made reference to it and I read it yesterday. A very good read and of course very little reporting of any substance on it in the media in Fiji. Can't understand why you are such a big fan of the media decree and sensorship in Fiji.
As Biman says it means the good and bad things happening get sensored out.
With regard to the Sinking Fund which Mr Barry Whitside referred to in his presentation on Thursday at The Waterfront Hotel in Lautoka: will it be possible for all those who have diverted public money and taxpayers' hard earned taxes which have been abused into this Sinking Fund? We were told, and I would agree, that this might be the least painful way in which the Qarase Government's imprudent US$150 million loan, taken out in November 2006 and which falls due for repayment next year 2011 with interest, might be addressed. The Sinking Fund should be promoted as the vehicle for repaying and conducting full restitution of all taxpayers' monies stolen, abused or diverted from development in the past 15 years since the fall of the National Bank of Fiji. Who would disagree with this? All politicians who voted in the November 2006 Budget for the US$150m loan, should be the first to volunteer their share. Those who voted against might be exempted on the grounds of sound commonsense! Viz Hansard.
@ Seeing Red..
The proposed Sinking Fund means of paying back this ill-advised loan, eagerly supported by the bloated Cabinet of 36 Ministers and Assistant Ministers of State in November 2006 Budget (the largest Cabinet of any Commonwealth Nation at the time) should now receive the support of any patriotic and prudent Fiji Citizen as a means of avoiding another devaluation and of ensuring - against all odds - Fiji's capacity to repay with interest what was done in all our names. How ill-conceived and ridiculously profligate this US dollar loan now appears? But this is the kind of exercise that politicians indulge in when they are completely ignorant of trends in global affairs. Those who now face charges of Abuse of Office, misuse of Public funds had best consider their positions with regard to the penalties they face. All their assets both in Fiji and overseas must now be forfeit to the Public Exchequer should they be found guilty in the Fiji High court. The message must be sent loud and clear to these people and anyone like them: You will be held to account. Self-enrichment at public expense is OUT.
Post a Comment