Grace Road Group says it will halt all new projects and business expansions in Fiji while it reviews its “future direction”.
In a statement released on its social media pages yesterday, Grace Road attacked The Fiji Times reports on its affairs, saying it was being “used as target practice for journalists”.
The Fiji Times has this week reported allegations by a woman member, who escaped from its True Mart Navua store last week, that she had been separated from her children.
The woman claimed the church’s 300 members were made to work in “slave like” conditions and she had suffered physical assaults from Grace Road Church members. The group did not respond to The Fiji Times questions on the allegations.
The Grace Road statement, which is unsigned, claimed that The Fiji Times story involved “a family going through issues between the father and the mother”. It said the Group and the associated Grace Road Church were being “dropped into the mix and given unnecessary prominence”.
“The Grace Road Church denies all allegations expressed and implied. The allegations are baseless accusations where one tries to use the media for personal leverage and gains,” the statement said.
The church said even though The Fiji Times had published a “sensationalised” article last year about elderly members of the group in Navua, “there was no further investigation by the police”.
“One has to question if the report had any merit or was based on any fact at all,” the statement said.
“As a foreign investor, over the years, Grace Road Group has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in Fiji. We pay millions of dollars in tax each year and provide close to 900 jobs.
“However the Grace Road Group and its church is used as target practice for journalists who wish to invite attention to their name by making baseless accusations.
“All this does is to pose a further hindrance to the business of the Grace Road Group as well as the lengthy legal proceedings and the unlawful detention of our key members including our group president in prison,” the statement said.
“Under the current circumstances, we find it very difficult to continue our business expansion.
“After extensive consideration Grace Road Group has decided to stop new projects and business expansions while we review our future direction – this is an indictment on the business environment afforded to us and confidence in Fiji as foreign investors.”
