Former Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has warned the government against politicising leadership appointments within key regulatory institutions, saying the recent electricity price hike controversy highlights the risks of poor governance.
He stated this in a social media post.
“To reiterate therefore, the Chair, the board and the CEO positions should not be given away as political candy or to curry favour with some at the expense of merit, competency and professionalism,” Sayed-Khaiyum said.
“If the Government does so it will eventually be to its own detriment… It will lead to uncertainty within the economy and market and again it will undermine public, business, investor confidence and policy stability.”
He claimed the 25 percent electricity tariff increase was the result of “the doings of the current Board and management of FCCC, not directly of the Government per se,” alleging a failure to follow internal regulatory processes.
“This is best demonstrated by the lack of adherence by FCCC of its own processes, a fundamental and egregious negligence,” he said.
Sayed-Khaiyum acknowledged Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s position that the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission operates independently.
“The Government cannot dictate to FCCC or interfere to arbitrarily dictate pricing, which will distort the market. Such interference would be illegal,” he said.
He added that regulators such as the FCCC “play a crucial and decisive role” comparable to bodies like Australia’s ACCC, and that their credibility is essential to investor confidence and economic stability.
“Decisions made by FCCC affect Fijian citizens, businesses and the wellbeing of the Fijian economy,” Sayed-Khaiyum said.
“It is apparent that the clout of certain political personalities appears to take precedence over the independence and reputation of a very crucial and independent national body.”
“Such independent national bodies have a direct impact on the well being of ordinary Fijians. It would appear that the well being of ordinary Fijians is subservient to the personal preference of a few.”
“There is a lesson in this for Prime Minister Rabuka and his team, they need to appoint the right people to the right jobs/positions because if they don’t then it can affect their ability to effectively govern, provide confidence to investors, businesses, look after ordinary Fijians and it can even affect their political standing with the voting public.”
