pn945. Fiji's Next Government: it all came down to the vote of two people (UPDATED)

UPDATE. SODELPA's management committee comprises 22 not 30 members. Six should not have have been preesent or voted. The meeting has been declared null and invalid, and a further meeting will be held today.

Well, the decision is made. SODELPA will join the People's Alliance/National Federation Party coalition to form Fiji's next government.

But what an election! 

Only 68% of eligible voters voted and of these 42.55% voted for Fiji First while an equal number voted for PA/NFP combined (35.82 and 8.89%). This left SODELEPA (that just managed to cross the 5% threshold with 5.14% of the votes) to decide which side to join. Should they go with Fiji First whose policies they oppose or would they overcome personal antagonisms with People's Alliance and join the coalition?

After 72 hours of discussions with the protagonists and deliberations their 30-person management team voted 16:14 to join PA/NFP. So, while 53,247 people had voted, the final election result was decided by two people!

SODELPA General Secretary Lenaitasi Duru, still smarting from PA campaign insults, resigned in disgust while former party leader and traditional chief Ro Teimumu applauded the result. 

While SODELPA is clearly a divided party, its three MPs have been instructed to vote with PA/NFP. If they abstain or vote against, they will automatically be expelled from parliament. This is legally binding. The 2013 Fiji Constitution does not allow MPs to "cross the floor."

FijiFirst had offered SODELPA ministerial portfolios for all three MPs, board positions for qualified party members on government statutory bodies and commercial companies, and a staffed office in Parliament chambers, but SODELPA wanted more: the deputy prime ministership, open contracts for civil servants (currently on fixed term), retirement age of 60 (currently 55), $FJD 159 million for the iTaukei Ministry (indigenous Fijian ministry), the repeal   of 32 laws they see as discriminatory, establishing a diplomatic mission in Jerusalem, and scrapping of FijiFirst's tertiary education policy.

The next four years are going to be challenging for the new government. If it holds together —and that is by no means assured—it will be able to pass legislation that requires a simple majority but with 26 of the 55 seats Fiji First can block major changes, including changes to the constitution and voting system.  

-- ACW