Opposition MP Faiyaz Koya has raised concerns over the extremely low voter turnout among Fijians living overseas, revealing that only about 600 of the 12,000 registered voters actually cast their ballots in the last election.
Speaking in Parliament yesterday, Koya said the figures highlighted a serious issue that must be addressed before the next general election.
“From what I understand, around 12,000 voters were registered from overseas, but only 600 voted — that’s a huge gap,” he said.
“This isn’t about wrong ballot papers or timing; the turnout itself is alarmingly low.”
Koya warned that the missing votes could have a decisive impact on Fiji’s political future.
“Sometimes elections in Fiji are decided by just a thousand votes,” he said. “Losing out on roughly 10,000 overseas votes could determine which political party forms government.”
He called on the Fijian Elections Office to investigate the reasons behind the low participation.
“We need to find out why this happened,” Koya said.
“In the next election, more Fijians will be eligible to vote, and we must ensure they are able and willing to do so.”
