Fiji goes to the polls on September 17, 2014 after a lapse of about eight years since the Army takeover in December 2006.
The 2014 general election is a radical departure from past electoral norms and conventions.
The entire process and rules governing the elections have been unilaterally imposed by the unelected Bainimarama regime without any consultations or discussions with stakeholders, including the 2013 Constitution.
The poll is to be conducted over one-day, which in itself is new to Fiji. Our elections in the past have been a week-long affair considering the geographical and logistical constraints faced by a small developing nation.
For the first time, there will be just one national constituency with 50 Parliamentary seats, instead of single member constituencies.
Political parties have agreed to participate, despite serious reservations regarding the process.
This is because of the overwhelming desire of the people of Fiji to return to Parliamentary democracy and the rule of law, and to get rid of the current regime.
Progressive policies
Labour’s preparations for the elections are in full swing. We recently released our Manifesto.
Labour’s 2014 election manifesto is a well-thought out, forward looking document that endeavours to address the pain and suffering inflicted on our people through eight years of misrule by an army-backed regime.
It focuses on the needs of the people – providing an integrated, holistic approach to address the many ills facing our society, chief among them being escalating poverty, high unemployment, mushrooming squatter settlements and rising cost of living.
Our Social package and rural revival policies deal with this.
Boosting growth
Labour’s policies are based on the premise that only through a strong, vibrant economy, can the State deliver on its social platform. Hence, our first task is to rebuild our ailing economy through restoration of investor confidence and the revival of our key agricultural activities.
One of the highlights of our Manifesto is to set up agricultural estates with fully developed lots, and subsidised housing to lure people back to the rural sector to engage in commercial farming with State assistance.
The other very important aspect of Labour’s policy platform is the reversal of repressive and draconian policies and decrees of the regime that have violated people’s fundamental rights, particularly workers and trade unions rights.
We also place emphasis on the economic empowerment of our youth with youth unemployment standing at a high of 20%.
Flawed process
Labour has steadfastly maintained from the very beginning that the restricted environment in which general elections are to be held is not conducive to the conduct of free, fair and credible elections. Particular disturbing developments are the following:
Changes to the ballot paper format which insist on using numbers to identify candidates instead of names, pictures or party symbols
One-day polls – the Elections office is unprepared for this massive task and lacks the logistics and capacity to implement it successfully
It is preposterous that elections should be under the ministerial charge of the Secretary General (Aiyaz Syed-Khaiyum) of the Prime Minister’s Party, who is also a candidate.
Election boss
The appointment of a Supervisor of Elections who failed to meet even the minimum qualification requirements for the post as advertised and who is deeply indebted to Mr Syed-Khaiyum for his career push.
A lame Electoral Commission reluctant to uphold the independence and integrity of the electoral process despite blatant abuse by the regime
The blanket immunity granted to the officials and members of the Electoral Commission, the Supervisor of Elections and their staff against any criminal or civil proceedings in the execution of their duties
Changes hurt
Constant changes to electoral rules, which not only create an environment of uncertainty in which to hold elections but also indicate that the process is being manipulated to suit the regime’s agenda.
The examples of the above charge are as follows: (a) removal of the two-year minimum residency qualification for registration as a voter. This means that anyone living abroad can vote in the elections. Only Fiji taxpayers and residents should be qualified to vote in elections (b) The sudden imposition of a two-year residency qualification for a candidate to contest the elections and (c) A series of changes to the political parties’ decree and the Voter Registration decree, again to suit the interests of the regime and its political party
Labour has found that these polls have no credibility.
In 1999, they were predicting that Labour will not win a single seat. We went on to achieve a landslide victory.
Mahendra Chaudhry is a former Prime Minister of Fiji. He is the Leader of the Labour Party in Fiji.
