Nightclubs are the “devil’s playground” and not a church, and every individual has the freedom to decide which one they want to be in.
Deep Sea nightclub owner Albert Chand said this while making submissions on the review of nightclub opening hours at Suvavou House last week.
Mr Chand has been operating the business for more than 20 years and at present has 44 staff members.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, he operated 18 nightclubs from Suva to Lautoka.
He proposed that if changes should be made to opening hours, then it be reduced from 5am to 4am.
The law permits nightclubs to operate from 5pm to 5am for special zones and other zones from 5pm to 1am.
“I have called nightclubs the devil’s playground, this is not a church,” Mr Chand said.
“People have a choice — whether to enter the nightclub or go to church, the choice is always theirs.
“The patrons right now in the clubs, are people who support the current government of the day. They come out and ask the DJs to dedicate songs to the government or the people’s Coalition Government, they celebrate and are happy.”
He said most patrons were villagers who travelled from the interior with their hard-earned money to the city.
“They celebrate too in a licensed place where taxes are paid, instead of going to the black market, seaside, or public places to cause more problems.”
