One of the many gigantic billboards erected on behalf of FijiFirst before the 2018 general election promoted the following slogan — “Embrace Truth, Reject Lies”.
Of course the FijiFirst government did the very opposite. They embraced lies, hoodwinked the nation by wasting, pilfering and mismanaging taxpayers’ funds, engaged in electioneering. And they rejected the truth.
This is the legacy that the Opposition, now the people’s Coalition Government, had repeatedly stated that FijiFirst would leave behind when being voted out of power in last December’s elections, after 16 years of rule, both as an unelected and FijiFirst governments. And this legacy was this week highlighted in detail by the World Bank in its Public Expenditure Review Report titled “Towards Fiscal Sustainability &Improved Spending Quality”.
Hitting the roof
Before last year’s elections, the nation was warned by the then Opposition that debt levels were over 90 per cent of Fiji’s GDP (gross domestic product) and that it was unsustainable.
The then FijiFirst government twisted this indisputable fact to lie that the Opposition was claiming Fiji was now bankrupt and further stated that borrowing was acceptable. From Independence in 1970 until the end of 2006, Fiji’s total debt stock was around $2.8 billion.
In the last 16 years, the unelected regime and FijiFirst government would have borrowed almost $7 billion. This would have the case had Fiji First been re-elected. $2.8 billion in 36 years, $7 billion in over 16 years.
This is the sad reality of the matter. Billions of dollars of debt, dinau or karz but public infrastructure and health and medical facilities in a state of decay. Now we are told that over $780 million is needed over five years to fix our water woes.
The dairy industry has been milked dry. Agriculture is in a state of neglect. The sugar industry, in terms of cane and sugar production, is struggling to survive. Against this backdrop came the two-day National Economic Summit that ended yesterday afternoon.
A genuine consultative process to help the Coalition Government map out sound and sensible strategies.
Irrelevant politicians
Not surprisingly, the man who failed in his task of prudently managing the nation’s treasury, former economy minister, rejected the World Bank’s Report. He joined a former prime minister and minister for finance for 18 months in the Bainimarama regime after the coup, in criticising the summit and its cost.
Perceptions do matter in politics. For some who have been or are at the helm of leadership to deliberately misconstrue the truth to suit their agenda, speaks volumes about their ethical conduct.
They should be the last people to talk about transparency and accountability.
One presided over unprecedented debt levels and decay of our infrastructure. The other should reflect on his own financial accountability. As a result he was fined $1 million and barred from contesting elections for eight years.
$A2 million raised in the aftermath of the 2000 coup and the creation of the Valelawa refugee camp in Vanua Levu come to mind. They can continue burying their heads in the sand.
Cost and transparency
The Prime Minister has made it clear that the summit would cost far less than the estimated budget of $360,000 because of sponsorship over $150,000. Whatever the case may be, it is more than likely the cost will be a drop in the ocean when compared to the few billions of dollars that the taxpayers have lost through wastage, pilferage, mismanagement and bad governance for the past 16 years.
For the first time in 16 years, people have the absolute freedom of criticising the Government without the fear of recrimination, backlash or loss of their employment. Why? Because in keeping with its promise of being an open, transparent and accountable government, the Coalition Government revealed details of the estimated expenditure of not only the summit but also the Girmit Day and Ratu Sukuna public holiday commemorative events. This never happened in the past 16 years.
Summit and the future
The summit wasn’t about those singing from the rooftops, one-upmanship and grandstanding. This summit was about the future. It was about the those who participated, their organisations and the people they represented, helping Government in reestablishing the path to genuine economic growth.
The summit was about all of them, on behalf of the people of Fiji recommend to Government how it can re-shape the future. A future that is safe and secure from economic catastrophe, which would have been the reality if we continued down the path of the last 16 years.
This forum of genuine dialogue and consultation was about Government listening to the people and not treat their ideas with contempt.
The road ahead
It was the beginning of the road ahead. One of the finest leaders of Fiji, Justice Jai Ram Reddy, always told the people in the 1990s that leaders are like drivers who should always focus on what is in front of them.
And at the same time, occasionally look in the rear-view mirror of the vehicle to ensure that they do not repeat mistakes of the past. Justice Reddy’s visionary statement was, is and will be highly relevant.
Subscribing to the values of this great leader of embodiment and wisdom of vision is critical as we march forward in unison on a road to lasting social and economic advancement. That vision encompasses institutional integrity.
This is fundamental as we collectively overcome the challenges that are and will confront us in the future. Institutional integrity and re-setting the moral compass of governance are the cornerstones to a new economic direction for Government to achieve fiscal consolidation.
And this can only happen if there are sound and sensible economic polices achieved through practical solutions. The recommendations from the past two days will no doubt carry great weight in reshaping economic policies.
No time to waste
To achieve the desired economic and fiscal objectives, the Coalition has stated it will govern and not manage or micro-manage the economy. The previous government’s interference in economic management, when it should have zealously protected the nation’s coffers and ensured that every cent of taxpayer dollar spent is value for money and is accounted for, has pushed us to the edge of the cliff.
Debt levels are unsustainable because of the previous policy just borrow and spend. A highly irresponsible action that has left every man, woman or child in our nation with well over $10,000 debt hanging over them.
It is the government’s duty to ensure we don’t fall into the abyss because that’s definitely not what any responsible leader wants to bequeath to our future generations. There is much to do and no time to waste.
All of those who participated in the summit had their hopes, aspirations and above all ideas on how to move forward. Ultimately, national interest must prevail. We all have seen or experienced the devastating effect of personal and political advancement on the social and economic fabric of our beloved nation.
Fiji is at critical cross-roads. Its social and economic fabric can be repaired through sound and sensible leadership. This Government has vowed just this, discarding the wild bull in the china shop style of leadership that has cost us dearly in the past.
Fiji can once again become a land of hope and opportunity if we genuinely embrace the truth and reject lies.
• KAMAL IYER is a member of the National Federation Party. The views expressed in this article are his and not of this newspaper.
