Building new mills
I agree with former FSC Board member, Arvind Singh that building two new mills without consulting farmers will not work in Government’s favour. Recently, I met a cousin from Nasau in Nadi and was informed that he could send only one load of cane to the mill at a cost of $700. The labourers were brought from Sigatoka. There after he did not get any quota. There are five farmers in Nasau and about 14 farmers in Tubarua who did not manage to find labourers to harvest their cane. Nasau and Tubarua have hilly terrain and mechanical harvesters cannot operate. The Sugar Minister held a meeting at a Nasau hotel (recently name changed), but the farmers did not receive any assistance. Rakesh Chand Sharma Nadi
To be or not to be!
One of the most consistent and critical mistakes of all government’s legislation, I believe, is the inadequacy of effective enforcement means, in my opinion. From road traffic, price tag manipulation to illegal drug black markets, all will be perpetuated accordingly. Even the level of narcotics smuggling and usage has gone through the roof. Fiji is very fortunate that its location is so isolated. Otherwise, it could have been a national crisis, in my opinion. With all that our enforcement officers have confronted and addressed to date, I believe the Government needs to invest more. Without proper and effective enforcement means, our communities will be robbed of their freedom. Today, public policing is rarely seen in our towns, cities and places of interest. What is happening? If the Government desires respect for any legislation, it must first make its enforcement mechanism respectable, in my opinion. Good law is good order, but without its proper enforcement means, it will be a sword, instead of a shield. To be or not to be. Samu Silatolu Nakasi
Top event!
I must congratulate Fiji FA on the recent IDC. Well organised. Incident free. In fact same goes for all tournaments before this IDC. I understand a lot of effort goes into organising such an event and with such a magnitude. Thanks to all involved. Blast from the past! Extremely amazed to see such a huge crowd. It was like a “blast from the past”. Definitely rolled back the years. For that I must thank all those that attended. Was it just because the IDC was held in the soccer crazy town of Ba, at Govind Park after so many years or the interest has finally come back amongst fans? I was very happy to see the two finalists showcasing possessional football. I would finally request Fiji FA to please make it mandatory for club soccer to be held in each district, be it 11s or Futsal. Make sure your area vice presidents and officers on the ground see these games take place. This certainly will bring out people from their homes. This, in turn, will have a huge player base that certainly benefits our districts and, in turn, our national teams. John Orobolu was the highest goal scorer at seven. Believe you me, Simon, Madigi, Nawalu, all used to score the same or even more per tournament. We have all the talents here. Please focus on club soccer at district level to bring out the most feared strikers and players in the South Pacific that we were once renowned for. I see a bright future for Fiji soccer if we do that. If not, it will be like “once upon a time” 13,000 crowd jam-packed a stadium. Before in every Fiji FA tournament, every National League game minimum 5000 crowd, every local league game, 1000 crowd minimum. This crowd of 13,000 has definitely come as a shock considering the fact that no other western team qualified for the semis. It was not a shock some 20 years ago. It should not be shocking from now onwards. Bring back the local league soccer in every district please. Make this professional. The interest is there. Just explore it please. A Shariff Shah Savusavu
Global voice
Fiji a trusted global voice – King (FT 12/10/25). Is it? After Fiji set-up an embassy in disputed Jerusalem and PM Rabuka and other Fijian leaders were photographed rubbing shoulders with Israeli PM Netanyahu a wanted war criminal, I am not so sure of Fiji being a trusted voice under the Rabuka gang in government. But it’s understandable where King Charles is coming from. I believe he has to do the diplomatic drill. As Prince Charles, he had come to hand-over our 1970 Independence Constitution which gave us 17 years of reasonably good stable political governance post independence until the 1987 Rabuka coup and the trashing of that constitution, the removal of the Queen as head of state and the fracturing of our democracy and multiracial harmony. For all the pomp and parade and paraphernalia of 55 years of independence we still have the lingering legacy of that political setback. Rajend Naidu Sydney, Australia
More spills
They say it is the spills and thrills but often the focus is on the thrills. Until this particular fellow arrives to spoil it. He thinks that “lefrees” and “rinesman” are one of the biggest problems in Fiji soccer. I think it is oral English. Mohammed Imraz Janif Natabua, Lautoka
Dead industry
With only one sugar mill operating for the whole of Viti Levu, I can say the slowly dying sugar industry is finally dead. Narayan Reddy Lautoka
Cold cases
I was pleased to read what one writer contributed about cold cases in The Fiji Times. Unsolved murder cases are one of the biggest mysterious issues there can ever be. One good example came up on the 60 Minutes program on Sunday evening, showing the case in one of our local high class hotel. A real good example of a mysterious cold case in Fiji. How the victim met his death is a mystery indeed. A good example. Question may arise, what have the detectives done about results from the Forensics Department on all the cold cases? Technology has made DNA matching much easier so to speak. The families of victims are waiting for answers I am pretty sure. AMINISITAI TORA Nadera, Nasinu
Give them a chance
On a scale of 0 to 10, where 0 means you would never consider voting them and 10 means you would definitely consider voting for them, how likely are you to consider voting for Fiji Labour Party in next year’s general election? Should we vote for Labour and give them a chance to prove themselves since their term as a legitimate and democratically elected Fijian government was truncated due to the 1987 and 2000 coup? Food for thought, ladies and gentlemen! Wise Muavono Balawa, Lautoka
Kalavata issue
Why are people so hung up on the kalavata as being a prominent feature in Fijian gatherings. In most cases where there are different village fundraising etc, the kalavata distinguishes Mataqali, families etc. It’s worn with pride. In most cases, the kalavata is bought by the individuals it does not come out of the actual amount achieved in the fundraising. Jan Nissar, (FT 14.10.25) – I have not known the “large cake” to be an integral part of the soli and definitely part of the culture and tradition. But I could be wrong. Have you noticed the amount of fun the people wearing kalavata have? Tai Smith Nasinu Sec Sch Rd, Kinoya, Nasinu
Parents lack discipline
I am writing in response to the recent article titled “Heads to belt pupils” by Jake Wise, which highlighted the growing indiscipline among students and the proposal to reintroduce corporal punishment in schools. It is becoming increasingly clear that many teachers are facing the consequences of poor discipline at home. Parents today are failing to properly guide and discipline their children, leaving teachers to deal with disrespectful and disruptive behaviour in classrooms. Teachers are expected to teach, motivate, and manage classes, yet they now spend more time correcting behaviour than delivering lessons. One major factor contributing to this problem is the growing influence of online games and digital entertainment. Many children spend excessive hours playing violent or competitive games, which affects their concentration, respect for authority, and social behaviour. This constant exposure to screen time often results in aggression, lack of focus, and disobedience – behaviours that then spill over into the classroom. Parents must take greater responsibility for monitoring their children’s online activities and instilling discipline at home. Schools alone cannot fix what begins in the home environment. Instead of relying solely on teachers to correct misbehaviour or bringing back corporal punishment, there needs to be a stronger partnershi between parents, teachers, and the community to guide students toward positive attitudes and respectful behaviour. SUMAN LATA Ba
Way to the World Cup
Our way to World Cup soccer has long passed away with the passing of Farouk Janeman and players like Mun Lal, Semi Tabaiwalu, Jo Tubuna etc. In 1981/82, Janeman was at the National Institute of Sports, Patiala, Punjab, India. Our Fiji student’s team participated in the Chandigarh City League. We paid Janeman’s return taxi fare to play with us in the Saturday league. Our Fiji team had reached the finals. What Janeman taught us was reflected in the Ba soccer team and they flourished. After returning to Fiji in late 1984, I realised that the things we did during practice at SVC ground didn’t reflect in club games at Prince Charles Park. I therefore, quit soccer and concentrated on developing secondary school cricket (Sangam SKM College 1990s) in association with Nadi’s Morarji Kalidas brothers; owners of Westpac and Airport Central buildings. Unless Fiji FA sends technical coaches to primary and secondary schools to develop soccer and mould players from a young age, the way to World Cup is a distant dream. Rakesh Chand Sharma Nadi
Recognise Taiwan!
I attended the Taiwan Independence Celebrations on October 9, 2025, at the GPH which to me was an absolutely beautiful occasion but with a tinge of sadness. This tinge of sadness was brought about when I realised that Fiji is yet to give The Republic of China-Taiwan, diplomatic status. Why not honorable Prime Minister Rabuka? Does Fiji not have the backbone to stand up and recognise the Republic of China – Taiwan as a country on its own. Did you not promise their return to diplomatic status. What exactly is holding you back sir, please enlighten us. Over the past 55 years (they had established themselves in Fiji way before some) The Republic of China – Taiwan has helped Fiji without trying to assert dominance, they’ve established farms and our people are now generating income from these farms. There is far too much aggression and bullying tactics in this world and Fiji is bowing to powers that engage in these practices. Let’s show the world we have a backbone and that we will stand up for the little ones. I know we can, we have virtually stood up for Israel against the Arab world. Just as a matter of interest, I believe the reason Fiji does not give diplomatic status to Republic of China – Taiwan is because they don’t want to upset The People’s Republic of China. There are two different names – they may carry similarities but not the same. So I believe they can be classified as two different countries. As countries they are at logger-heads but that is irrelevant here. So, honorable Prime Minister, please tell us why Republic of China – Taiwan cannot get diplomatic status in Fiji? Tai Smith Nasinu Sec Sch Rd, Kinoya, Nasinu
