|
|
Biman Prasad's Address
The Hon Prof Biman Prasad started by quoting the President's speech a year ago, and noted that the position is exactly the same.
Th Fiji First Government has no vision, no plan — zero. Covid-19 is blamed for all Fiji’s economic problems. After all it is the Government that writes the speech. And we all know, Mr Speaker, that whenever this Government gives us bad news, it is always somebody else’s fault.
The speech mentioned the so-called “Covid-Safe Economic Recovery Framework”, the so-called “blue-green economy”, digitisation, and and the need for civil servants to be more efficient. Very good. Lots of talk, but where is the action?
Then, Mr Speaker, there was one paragraph – I repeat, one paragraph – on the Government’s legislative agenda for the year. There will be an anti-doping Bill. There will be a Refrigerants Management Bill. There will be a Hotel Data Collection Bill. And so on. And then suddenly, Mr Speaker, His Excellency’s speech was over. That was it.
Why Mr Speaker? Because His Excellency’s Government – the people on the other side of the House – they have nothing to say. They have nothing to offer the people of Fiji. And this has been the pattern for the last three years.
They said nothing on agriculture, sugar, tourism, manufacturing, exports. Zero. No plan. The speech was a zero-content zone. That is the speech his government wrote for him. Because we have a zero-ideas government.
Mr Speaker, we are facing the worst economic crisis and led by the worst government in Fiji’s history.
They have already spent all the money. All they can tell the people of Fiji is “take more out of your FNPF.”
Mr Speaker this is what you get with a government that refuses to listen. This is what happens with a government that pretends it has all the answers. What is the reality of the matter? The only ideas this government has ever had are about how to spend money. And because this government now has no money to spend, it has no ideas.
Mr Speaker this government cannot even be honest with the people. It does not have the courage to tell them, “things are going to get worse in the New Year.” It just continues to pretend that everything is normal.
Mr Speaker, it is now 14 years since the 2006 coup. And look at our country. Fiji today is more divided, more indebted and more dictated to than it has ever been. The Honourable Sayed-Khaiyum, promises us “true democracy”. What do we have? A Parliamentary dictatorship. Even the other Ministers do not know what is going on in their government. They ban town and city council elections - because they know the opposition parties will win those elections.
The Prime Minister promised an end to corruption. But corruption is worse than it has ever been. How many of those government-controlled councils are being investigated by FICAC right now? How hard is it to build a swimming pool in Lautoka?
Now when people talk about this “Bainimarama Boom” they are laughing. Our national debt is nearly as big as our economy. The sugar industry is on its knees. Our rates of violence against women and children are some of the highest in the world. So are our rates on health – for hypertension, heart disease and diabetes. The health system is in tatters. The Government has not met its promises to Aspen to give them working hospitals. We have an education system that is failing our young people. We have deepening poverty.
All our public institutions, the public service, the Police, our constitutional offices, our Parliament – are politicised and bent to the will of two men. The Prime Minister promised that no-one would sit on more than one Government board, but the boards are now packed with all the same people. Most of them are people who have contributed towards the millions of dollars in the Fiji First Party bank account. But, most importantly, there is no vision for the future. This is a government that has given up, that makes it up as it goes along.
We are calling on the people of Fiji to change all of this. We want a government in which everyone has their say.
We want to combine the best ideas and the best people to deal with our pressing national problems.
The people of Fiji have no say in in what happens – except, once in four years, their vote. We are calling for new leaders to step forward now and help us prepare for the 2022 election ... young people, community leaders in education, social work, business and the professions. We need them to step forward. If we want Fiji to prosper and our people to live in a fair and equal society where all are respected and taken care of, there must be change.
Let us all march forward in this direction.
People may ask, what would we do differently? The answer is “everything”.
Good government is honest, accountable. It brings the people of our country together. It combines people’s talents to solve our national problems. It brings the Government and the opposition together to reach agreement on long-term policies for long-term issues, and works together at local level, then to come together to work on national problems. Good government uses the power of laws and public money to deliver the solutions our people have discussed and agreed.
Our current government has forgotten these basic things. It only dictates to people. It punishes its enemies and rewards its friends. Without good government, Fiji cannot progress. This is what must change. And Mr Speaker, we are the party to change it.
Lenora Qereqeretabua's Address
The Hon Lenora Qereqeretabua opened by congratulating Hon Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu on his election to the position of Leader of the Opposition and paid tribute to the former Leader of Opposition, Sitiveni Rabuka.
She then alluded to the direction government will be taking “as (in the words of the President's Address) we press ahead in our work to drive bluer, greener, more inclusive, and more sustainable development, the government’s focus in this parliamentary session will be centered on three key priorities: 1. Our containment of COVID-19; 2. Our economy’s recovery; and 3. Our response to the climate, oceans and biodiversity crises.
On 1, Covid she said the true test of our mettle will come once the borders re-open and efforts are ramped up to kick-start the economy through tourism, commended the contact tracing features Care Fiji App, but noted recent health ministry briefings made no mention of the app.
On 2, the economy, she said the economy’s recovery depends greatly on how we treat each other now, it depends on full and fair Consultation, on Empathy and on Compassion. There are those running businesses and organizations, who are trying to save jobs, stop the bleeding out of cash and savings, and innovate. School Heads working out new processes for ensuring student progress and holding graduations. Public health workers making recommendations for people in poverty-stricken areas, where social distancing or hand washing with clean, safe water with soap are luxuries, and are struggling to share honest information while keeping fear at bay. And then there are the Leaders or Heads of families trying to put food on the table when jobs have been lost and tummies are empty and there are extra mouths to feed.
On the theme of how the economy’s recovery depends consultation, on empathy and on compassion, . she referred to the long-standing problems within our under-resourced public health and medical system and infrastructure that cannot be blamed on Covid; to village nurses all over Fiji who were still owed pay, some since November 2019; on clinics that did not have the drugs to treat HIV on a daily basis.
She knew of one person who had not received treatment of over 7 weeks long. After 5 weeks, when he was told to pick up his drugs, they were missing one of the combinations. Almost three weeks later, the third of his drug combination arrived, after being out of stock. When this happens, one needs a blood test to determine the best combination to continue treatment. But both the CD4 count test and the viral load test were out of stock and, I have been reliably told, only arrived into Fiji in late October – HOWEVER – upon this patient’s last visits to his Suva-based doctor (at the Oceania Hospital), on the 23rd and 30th November, these two tests were still not available to be used on the patient despite the kits being in stock.
She referred also to her motion on 29th July to have the dialysis subsidy increased from $100,000 to $3.5 million to ensure low-income families pay only $75 per session for dialysis instead of $150, $200 or even $250. The Minister for Health assured Parliament that the National Dialysis and Kidney Research Centre would be fully operational in November 2020 —but the Centre is still closed and there is still no subsidised dialysis for patients in the Western, Central and Eastern Divisions.
And finally to the level of gender-based violence in Fiji. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Fiji also face challenges not experienced by non-LGBT people—what is Government doing to address these issues? I am grateful for organisations including the Rainbow Pride Foundation and Haus of Chameleon to name just two for the work they are doing for the community.
On 3, Our response to the climate, oceans and biodiversity crises, she referred to the work of the Department of Environment, in particular its Waste Management and Pollution Control Unit which is responsible for waste and pollution control in Fiji Solid Waste, Liquid Waste, Air Pollution, Hazardous and Chemical Waste, whose website pleads lack of resources. “One of the major challenges is the lack of financial and technical resources; currently there are about 5-6 staff who handle waste and pollution related matters Fiji-wide.”
Mr Speaker, if Fiji is to earn its title as a global environmental champion, I think we must at the very least give more financial and technical resources to the Department responsible for safe-guarding Fiji’s environment.
She went on to call for proper patrols to monitor oil spills, coral reefs, coastal fisheries, mangroves and the livelihoods and health of seaside communities, and asks for contacts in the event of an environmental emergency, and commended the work of the Coral Restoration programme headed by, Dr Victor Bonito, a coral reef scientist, who has been working in Fiji for more than 15 years has been working closely with village communities to restore coral reefs.
Some 6 to 10 years after their establishment, the Marine Protected Areas or Tabu have 500% more live coral cover and 50% greater species richness of coral than adjacent fished areas, little to no seaweeds, and 30% more food fish, 50% more species of food fish, and 500% more biomass of food fish than the adjacent fished or Tara areas.
She thanked HE The President for his most gracious speech, and underscored the points in her reply that highlighted the well-known quote; “Those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.”
"May this Christmas renew in us a love for our fellow Fijians; for those who are struggling and downtrodden, and remember that Jesus is the reason for the season."
No comments:
Post a Comment