There also exists an incredible humbly written “Letter to the Editor” by Jackson Mar (the file I have is dated 21 June 2011) which is an eight page memorandum, virtually a tour de force analysis of FNPF’s problems at that time, including its investments locally and overseas, its annuity rates, its retirement policies, its Board structure and composition, and much more.
Also on record are two Ross McDonald emails (dated 9 June 2011 and 14 June 2011) to FNPF Board Chairman and the FNPF CEO Aisake Taito, who callously ignored all our voices of reason.
For the 2012 pensioners’ battles, there were three major issues which had built up by the time a new Government came in after the 2022 Elections came around which Jackson Mar addressed.
1. Could the FNPF have continued to pay the 2012 Pensioners at the contracted rates without endangering FNPF?
2. What did the FNPF owe the 2012 Pensioners by 2023 in terms of restoration of pensions and arrears?
3. Did the 2012 Pensioners have legal grounds to challenge what the Bainimarama did unilaterally in breaking our lawful contracts in 2011?
The core group
When the 2012 Pensioners renewed their battles for justice, a “core group” emerged to make submissions to the ministers and the FNPF. Many of them had already been active in opposing the robbery in 2011 and 2012, but Jackson was an active and intrinsic part.
The core group comprised Jackson Mar, Matt Wilson, Ross MacDonald, Professor Wadan Narsey, Professor Vijay Naidu, Dr Esther Williams, and Dewan Chand
The latest co-opted member is Ronnie Chang who the public will know for his frequent fiery letters to the editors of The Fiji Times and Fiji Sun.
The public well know these core group names as they have written numerous articles in the media, sent numerous Letters to the Editor, and made formal submissions to the Prime Minister and other ministers, including a definitive memorandum “The Long Road to Justice” co-ordinated by Matt Wilson (with financial analysis by Jackson and myself), and draft remedial legislation (Daniel Fatiaki and Jackson Mar).
Jackson’s financial skills
When we renewed our battles for justice after the election of the Coalition Government, Jackson and I shared the detailed spreadsheets we had developed of the financial implications of the 2012 Robbery, bringing the data up to 2023.
I found to my amazement that like me, Jackson had gone through every FNPF Annual Report from 1975 right up to 2011. He showed (like me) that had the FNPF properly credited the Pension Buffer Fund (PBF) with interest from the beginning, they would have had far more in the PBF than what they claimed at the time they robbed the 2012 Pensioners with the lies that they could not pay the pensions at the rates that they had agreed upon in the Form 9NOP contracts.
Jackson and I also then brought the 2011 sums up to 2023 fully accounting for the compound interest rate on balances owed to the 2012 Pensioners.
Jackson used his accounting methods, while I used my economic analysis. Our final answers were within 1 per cent of each other, reassuring us that both sets of calculations were fundamentally accurate. The FNPF had no response to make to our calculations or to our Memorandum “The Long Road to Justice”.
Clearly, by halving the pensions in 2011, the FNPF made a massive profit which has compounded over the fourteen years since then, helping the FNPF to credit generous amounts to the members, including the record 8 per cent last year.
In the end, the FNPF Board Chairman (Daksesh Patel), faced with our statistics, could only say to me a year ago that the Board’s hands were tied by the Bainimarama Government’s Decrees 51 and 52. The FNPF Board and Management also quietly allowed their 2011 Actuary (Rashbrooke) to publicly and mischievously defend the illegal 2011 breaking of contracts, knowing full well that an independent actuary (Tompkins) had warned in 2011 that while the FNPF could reduce future pensions, contract law would prevent the retrospective cutting of already signed pensions.
Jackson’s legal skills
For the core group’s recent submission to the Fiji Government, former chief justice Daniel Fataki with contributions by Jackson and us, expertly analysed Decrees 51 and 52 and gave nine solid legal reasons why these decrees were fundamentally unsound and unlawful.
These included the tragic history of these illegal decrees, their breaking of sacred contracts in law, their undermining of pensioners’ basic human rights to property and access to the courts for justice, the undermining of the courts and the judiciary, and the fact that these illegal decrees had never been approved by any elected parliament which the FijiFirst party controlled from 2014 to 2022. There were more fatal legal flaws pointed out by Justice Fatiaki.
So there is no better person to describe Jackson’s legal acumen and his contribution to the pensioners’ cause than the words of the former chief justice Daniel Fatiaki:
“Although untrained in the law, that was no barrier to Jackson’s dedication and commitment to the pensioner’s cause.
“Not content with just pursuing restitution through political means and goodwill, Jackson overcame his unfamiliarity with the law by conducting his own legal research into a possible legal claim against FNPF.
“His research identified several grounds for challenging unlawful Decrees including “ultra vires” (beyond powers) legislation; unlawful retrospective(back-dated) laws; and unjust and unconscionable ouster (denial of access to justice) clauses. All these elements are present in the infamous Decrees Nos.51 and 52 of the Bainimarama/Sayed-Khaiyum Regime.
“As someone who has spent a lifetime working in the law, I was impressed with Jackson’s industry and never-say-die attitude.
“At his age Jackson was legally self taught. The results of his legal research far exceeds the abilities and skills of many qualified lawyers practising today.
“Jackson became so adept at legal writing that he even drafted a Pension Restitution Bill for presentation to Cabinet. This was done in due course.”
I find it amazing that even while Jackson was recovering in bed from his recent surgery, he was still working on more legal research, despite being enormously tired by the surgery.
An email (8 August 2025) from Jackson to his friend Rick Rickman (The Pensioners Website) which Jackson forwarded to me said “Irreversible [irrespective] of whether the constitution is revoked, there are various legal avenues to get a case to court by bypassing ouster laws 173/174 and the ouster law in Decree 51. I have a few papers to [put] before the courts”.
Sadly it was not to be.
The light at the end of the tunnel
In 2024, there appeared a ray of hope for the 2012 Pensioners. In the 2024 budget, the Minister of Finance made provision to restore the pensions of those who had been forced to accept a reduced pension in 2012.
Professor Prasad stated clearly that “the military regime in 2011 unilaterally and illegally reduced the pension rates for many FNPF pensioners and broke the statutory arrangement and trust between the Fund and the pensioners. To deny justice, the Government enacted a law to restrict these pensioners from challenging this unfair treatment in the court of law”.
While this measure was welcomed by all the 2012 Pensioners, it was correctly pointed out by businessman Halabe that the financial responsibility should not be on taxpayers, but on FNPF which had benefited.
Despite this 2024 Government acknowledgement of the 2012 Robbery, there have been no measures to restore the pensions of those who were forced to accept lump sums or partial lump sums, nor the arrears of all groups of wronged pensions.
In a meeting with the (former) attorney-general Everett Leung (September 2024), he acknowledged that a “major injustice” had been done to the 2012 pensioners, but advised that if the pensioners took the matter to court, the litigation would wear them down. He advised that the best option for settling the longstanding dispute was through a political process.
The core group agreed with the former A-G. Unfortunately, Jackson did not agree with this approach and he passionately told us so.
Not on the same wavelength
There is little doubt that Jackson was not always on the same wavelength as his core group colleagues. He did not hide his disappointment with the “softly” approach of the core group direction and leadership which he challenged.
While he was totally disgusted with the ministers for their lack of response, he continued to write independently to them and to possible lawyers, of some worry to the core group.
My suspicion is that as a local accountant Jackson may have had unpleasant experiences with white colonial expatriates in the banking and tourism industry in the ’60s and ’70s, similar to what we local USP academics also experienced in the early ’70s. This may have affected Jackson’s strained relationship with some members of the core group.
But Jackson was also absolutely convinced by his legal research that the 2012 Pensioners’ case could be won in court even with the 2013 Constitution (and all its associated decrees) in place.
The core group did not agree with Jackson’s independent approach to lawyers, especially after the former A-G had made known his pessimistic views on the likely outcome of a legal challenge.
The core group had already been bitten because an overseas actuary who had been paid a few thousand dollars at Jackson’s instigation for verifying Jackson’s financial calculations, later changed his report for unknown reasons.
The core group was therefore quite wary of going for the legal option, especially when a political solution has always seemed to be around the corner.
Which is the current state of affairs with the Coalition Government waiting for the Supreme Court Opinion due next month on a number of constitutional questions, some directly impacting solutions to the 2012 FNPF Robbery.
Ironically the passing of Jackson may speed up the required Government response. Who knows, the core group may end up going down the legal path that Jackson advocated.
Tributes by the core group
Members of the core group were genuinely shocked and saddened by the sudden passing of Jackson who we all came to know so well over the last two years.
Ross MacDonald (corporate leader) says “I remember Jackson with gratitude, particularly as he was the catalyst to get our committee together, sharing with us his dedicated work over many years that is the foundation of all that we have done.”
Professor Vijay Naidu (Professor of Development Studies at USP) wrote: “Jackson was a person of integrity with a brilliant mind as well as the capacity to explain complex financial and legal matters in simple terms”.
Dr Esther Williams (former DVC at USP) wrote: “Jackson, was a champion of all pensioners, a fighter to the end ever caring, ever brave.”
Matt Wilson (Public Relations Adviser of long standing): “Jackson, you were with the pensioners to the end. Thank you from our hearts for your long selfless service, determination, sacrifice and vision. Go well now, Warrior.”
Ronnie Chang, close family friend of Jackson and Shirley (and the latest co-opted member of the pensioners’ core group) testified “Jackson served Fiji’s tourism industry, and beyond, with pride, honour and distinction spanning fifty two faithful years. For the pensioners’ cause, Jackson burnt numerous hours of midnight oil for all his detailed accounts; statistics; and legalities in law to present “his case”. He fought gallantly till the end.
Libby Reade-Fong noted: Jackson Mar’s personal and professional life was lived in accordance with his Catholic faith in which justice and fairness was the core of belief and action especially for the poor and marginalised, guided by Psalm 11:7, “The Lord is righteous, he loves justice”. I promise that as a devoted Catholic, I will not give up the battle, for the sake of Jackson and for those who have gone before him.”
What more can anyone say?
The ending is not the end
Jackson’s fellow-Catholic and legal colleague in the Core Group, Daniel Fatiaki said:
“Rest well dear colleague and friend and keep a watchful eye on us from your heavenly abode. In the words of the 8th beatitude: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”.
But we can all be sure that the lives of the 2012 pensioners and their families, may well become better on earth, helped by Jackson’s passionate commitment to justice.
- PROF WADAN NARSEY is one of the region’s senior economists and a regular commentator on political and economic issues in Fiji. He is one of the affected 2012 pensioners.
The first part of the article published yesterday. Picture: THE FIJI TIMES