Opposition MP Penioni Ravunawa says he’s happy to remain an independent member of the House.

Mr Ravunawa said yesterday other parties had written to de-registered FijiFirst party Opposition Leader Inia Seruiratu.

“They haven’t written to us individually,” Mr Ravunawa said.

“They wrote to our Leader of Opposition, so we have had invitations from Fiji Labour Party and other parties”

Mr Ravunawa said being an independent MP allowed him to work with the Government and at the same time with the Opposition.

“It’s progress to be independent, it’s a unique history in our parliamentary democracy.

“Other parliaments, like in Australia, have independents, so they have the opportunity to work with the Government and also work with the Opposition.

“We’ll see what is presented to us as we move on from here.”

Mr Ravunawa made it clear he won’t give in easily because FijiFirst had its own policies.

“We will make use of the opportunity to negotiate but at the same time, we don’t want to be seen as desperate in taking up positions with the Government. But whatever we do, it’s for the betterment and progress of Fiji as a nation.”

He said the party could have been saved by the registered officers who resigned.

“It is very sad as the resignation of the executives and the founding member came as a shock to us.

“We tried our best to keep FijiFirst going, but unfortunately our hands were tied on that issue.

“We feel for what transpired with the FijiFirst, but it has also provided us an opportunity to rebrand, move forward and keep the principles of what we believe in.”