Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka brought a moment of humour to Parliament on Thursday when he recalled spending a night in a police cell and learning a lesson about his legal rights from a fellow detainee.
Speaking during debate on the Police Bill 2026, Mr Rabuka shared an experience in which he and several other prominent individuals were each placed in separate police cells overnight.
“Mr. Speaker, Sir, before I resume my seat, I just want to relate an episode in my life, a night in a Police cell,” he said.
“I and some other VIP cellmates were given one cell each for the night. I had the Raiwaqa cell.”
Mr Rabuka recalled that while trying to sleep at around 2am or 3am, another detainee was brought into the adjoining cell.
However, unlike the Prime Minister, the new arrival was determined to make his legal rights known.
“But this chap knew his rights more than I did. He was banging on the cell wall and calling out to the Police, ‘I want my lawyer, I want my lawyer, I know my rights.’”
Mr Rabuka admitted that the incident made him realise he could have made a similar demand.
“I said, ‘I should have done that’. But I kept on trying to get to sleep.”
He said the detainee continued shouting until members of two rugby teams, who had been celebrating behind the police station, emerged.
“I do not know whether they spoke to him quietly or did something quietly, but he suddenly shut up,” Mr Rabuka recalled.
The Prime Minister ended his account with a humorous declaration that he would be better prepared if he ever found himself in police custody again.
“But the next time I go in, I know what to call out.”
“I know my law, I know my rule, I know my rights. Bring my lawyer here.”
Mr Rabuka did not specify when the incident occurred or the circumstances surrounding his detention.
The anecdote came as Parliament debated the Police Bill 2026, with the Prime Minister using his personal experience to recount an encounter with a detainee who was vocal about his right to legal representation.
