SPEAKER of Parliament Filimone Jitoko has delivered a damning indictment of the conduct of Fiji’s elected representatives, warning that repeated absenteeism, chronic lateness and a lack of commitment by Members of Parliament are weakening the credibility of the nation’s highest law-making institution.
Mr Jitoko expressed frustration at the growing culture of indifference among MPs, many of whom failed to attend key parliamentary workshops designed to strengthen governance, accountability and legislative performance.
Despite significant resources being poured into initiatives such as the SCORE Awareness Session – including support from international agencies, NGOs and governance experts – only a fraction of MPs bothered to attend.
“It is disappointing that despite the invitation of the chair for honourable members to make every effort to attend them, only some of you did,” Mr Jitoko said. The Speaker also condemned MPs who arrive late to parliamentary sittings, remain briefly for appearances sake, and then leave before proceedings conclude. Others, he revealed, routinely fail to return after suspension breaks without adequate explanation.
“Such attendance patterns diminish the effectiveness of parliamentary proceedings and undermine the dignity and orderly conduct of the House.”
The criticism amounts to one of the strongest public rebukes yet from the Speaker’s Office. Mr Jitoko reminded MPs that they were not merely political figures, but representatives entrusted with a national responsibility.
“At the end of the day, you, as parliamentarians and representatives of the Parliament of the Republic of Fiji, are responsible and answerable to the people of the country.”
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