THE 2012 Pensioners Committee has called on the Constitution Review Commission (CRC) to remove provisions that prevent citizens from challenging certain decrees and laws made during the 2006 to 2014 period.
Committee chairman Professor Vijay Naidu said the provisions under Sections 173(3), 173(4) and 173(5) of the 2013 Constitution should be removed as they prevented courts from reviewing the legality or constitutionality of certain laws and from granting remedies to affected people.
The submission stems from the 2011 Fiji National Provident Fund (FNPF) pension reforms, which reduced pension payments for existing pensioners.
A group of affected pensioners, led by the late David Burness, took legal action in the High Court challenging the reforms. The case had commenced, with Justice Hettiarachchi ruling that the proceedings would continue.
However, the then government later introduced the 2011 FNPF Transition Decree (Decree 51), which prevented courts from hearing challenges against the pension reforms or providing compensation, damages, relief or other remedies to affected pensioners.
In its submission to the CRC, the committee described Decree 51 as a violation of the rights of pensioners affected by the reforms.
“The 2012 Pensioners Committee maintains that Decree 51 was a gross violation of the human rights of approximately 6000 pensioners at that time,” Prof Naidu said.
“This number has dwindled down to approximately 1400 as more than 4600 have died without seeing pension justice done.”
Prof Naidu acknowledged that the Coalition Government, through former Minister of Finance Prof Biman Prasad, had provided pension top-ups using taxpayer funds over the past year and a half for some affected pensioners.
“The remaining pensioners continue to wait for full pension justice amid their struggles to make ends meet.”
The committee’s submission called for the removal of provisions that restrict courts from hearing cases related to laws made between December 5, 2006 and the first sitting of Parliament under the 2013 Constitution.
Prof Naidu said the restrictions preventing citizens from seeking legal remedies should be removed, while provisions that did not limit access to justice should remain.
“The 2012 Pensioners Committee’s specific request is that those following sections be removed from the anticipated Constitution of the Republic of Fiji.”
