A political war of words has erupted between the Fiji Labour Party (FLP) and the Peoples Alliance Party over the continued delay in holding municipal council elections, with both sides trading accusations over broken promises, political appointments, and the state of local governance.
The FLP has accused the Coalition government of betraying a key election pledge by failing to restore elected municipal councils nearly three years into its term.
“This is yet another broken promise,” the party said in a statement, describing the current system of Special Administrators as a “gross abuse of ratepayers’ money,” said a FLP statement.
FLP said appointments were based on “political affiliation and cultural ties,” and that the decision to have three administrators per municipality was designed “to please the three Coalition partners.”
The party further alleged that the Government was deliberately avoiding elections. “It is now certain that elections will not be held during the Coalition’s tenure, for fear of their candidates being thrashed by angry ratepayers,” the statement claimed.
In response, the People’s Alliance Party General Secretary Sila Balawa labelled the FLP’s remarks as “misleading, hypocritical, and recycled rhetoric.”
“Labour talks about elections; we are delivering them,” Mr Balawa said, pointing to Cabinet’s recent approval of the Electoral (Local Government Elections) Regulations 2025, which replaces the outdated 1972 rules left unchanged under previous governments.
He defended the appointments of special administrators, saying they include former mayors, civil servants, and professionals selected through a transparent process.
“Labour’s attacks on their integrity are both dishonest and insulting,” he said.
Mr Balawa added that the Coalition is laying the legal groundwork for proper elections, while accusing the FLP of “playing cheap politics” and offering “no solutions, no vision, and no credibility.”
Municipal elections remain unscheduled, but are expected following the new regulations.
