Update: 4:11PM CONSENSUS, goodwill, dialogue, and bipartisanship are missing from Fiji’s national political landscape, says National Federation Party leader Professor Biman Prasad.

Mr Prasad said with the country celebrating its 476 years of independence today, “we believe it is time to rededicate ourselves to one nation, one destiny just as we did 47 years ago”.

“Let us remember the giant strides made by our country’s founding fathers and to hold true to the spirit of unity and understanding of our independence because freedom, hope, and glory is still ours if we grasp it,” he said.

“Let us in the spirit of unity and harmony through genuine talanoa, so ably demonstrated by our founding fathers, bequeath to our future generations a nation of boundless hopes, endless dreams, and aspirations and above all a Fiji that once again becomes a symbol of genuinely united, harmonious and a beacon of hope.”

In a statement on the occasion of Fiji Day today, the NFP paid tribute to the founding fathers of Fiji, hailing them as gigantic leaders who put national interest above everything else to negotiate Fiji’s independence 47 years ago.