The deferment of municipal elections will allow time to address concerns over ward demarcations and municipal boundaries while also easing pressure on the country’s finances, says National Federation Party (NFP) leader Professor Biman Prasad.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Prof Prasad said that if Fiji were to hold local government elections, a constitutional referendum, and proceed to a general election after completing the constitutional review process, the overall cost would exceed $50-60million within a short span of time.
“We cannot as a country afford that, and the focus really should be to support our people, the most vulnerable,” he said.
He said the decision by the Prime Minister to postpone the elections was supported by the NFP.
He added that the decision also reflects the need to properly review long-standing concerns raised by political parties and communities regarding municipal boundaries.
“There were also additionally other issues with respect to the changes in the demographics, the movement of people to urban centres.
“So, I think the local government apparatus and the structure itself needs to be given careful consideration and a thorough look.”
Prof Prasad added that while municipal elections will be deferred, the general election timetable remains unchanged.
“We can’t defer the general election as per the current Constitution and the dates are very clear, and so, the only election that we could defer was local government and that’s the right thing to do at the moment.”
He said the NFP continues to raise issues within the Coalition when necessary but remains focused on preparations for the general election.
