The coalition Government was told yesterday to relook at its priorities and focus on its hospitals, not cocktail parties to launch new corporate logos.
International Women’s Association president Judy Compain said it was certainly not a priority for the government to have “a lavish cocktail” at the Grand Pacific Hotel to celebrate the change in the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation (FBC) logo while pictures emerged in the news media about the deteriorating state of the CWM Hospital.
“Why are they prioritising other matters instead of the CWM Hospital,” she queried.
“Why are they trying to fix something that’s not broken?
“Everybody needs to relook at their priorities and I’m going to keep speaking out for the hospital and about the hospital because this needs to be everyone’s priority right now.”
Ms Compain said members of the public need to start expressing their views about the conditions of hospitals.
“I don’t need to think there is anything worse than the current condition of the hospital.
“I don’t think anything else is more important than giving people basic human rights and dignity.
“There is no dignity for anybody in that hospital especially women and even the children and really for every patient.”
Ms Compain said the media tour of the facilities last week proved the state of the hospital was deteriorating.
“It’s fantastic that the Prime Minister has asked the media to go on a tour of the facility and speak out on the condition of the hospital.
“You have really exposed the rot within the hospital and now you can really understand why the previous government has all these notices around the hospital where they said you not allowed to take photos.
“Now you exactly know why we weren’t allowed to take photos of the hospital because this was all being hidden.”
Commenting on media pictures of the state of the CWM Hospital kitchen, Ms Compain said it needed to be shut down.
She asked the public to contribute funds for improvements to the hospital as the International Women’s Association was doing.
In an earlier news conference, FBC chairman Ajay Bhai Amrit said the GPH cocktail had already been budgeted for and it was a client event.
He said according to information he had received, FBC held cocktail parties two to three times a year for clients and sponsors.
He said FBC, under his chairmanship, would have only one cocktail a year.
Questions have been sent to permanent secretary for Health Ministry Dr James Fong for his response.
