MEMBERS of the Great Council of Chiefs should be united and stand up to the
forces that are
destroying the country, says Fiji Resorts Limited general manager, Radike Qereqeretabua.
"I believe that is what the whole of Fiji now awaits with bated breath,
is for this institution to be united
and stand up to the forces that are destroying their country and demonstrate
that they are truly
deserving of the title of the Great Council of Chiefs," Mr Qereqeretabua
said.
He said the economy of the country has been drastically affected and this is
not the time for finger
pointing. "Now is the time to find solutions to enable us to move forward,
salvage the present and
safeguard our future." He said there's no better place to look right now
than to the institution once
revered by all who call themselves indigenous Fijians.
"Most Fijians are looking up to this council for some wise, definitive
and effective action that will
bring back order and respect for authority in the minds of that section of the
Fijian community which,
by their actions, are openly defying the military, the police and the GCC itself,"
said Mr
Qereqeretabua.
Mr Qereqeretabua said recent events clearly show that it is not enough for
the GCC simply to appoint a
President and Vice President and then return to their respective provinces or
vanua leaving the
President to solve all the problems. The way forward should be shown by our
chiefs but this is not the
case.
There seems to be alot of discontentment shown around the country and some
chiefs are being
involved. The country can only move forward if chiefs are united and help in
restoring peace and
harmony.
Fiji's Daily Post
FIJI Football Association's development program suffered a major blow after
the New Zealand
government refused to issue a travelling visa to development officer Farouk
Janeman. Janeman was
nominated by the Fiji FA to attend a soccer development seminar in Auckland.
The New Zealand government has placed sanctions on Fiji which resulted in the
rejection of the visa.
According to Fiji FA's Jitendra Maharaj, though New Zealand allows individuals
to enter their country, it
is surprising that such a stand was taken by New Zealand.
Paul Goldsmith (secretary to New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Phill Golf)
had earlier in the day
mentioned that only national teams and clubs from Fiji were not allowed into
New Zealand. When Fiji FA
approached him in regards to Janeman's case, he said that the visa was rejected
because he was entering
New Zealand to take part in a sporting activity which disqualifies him from
obtaining a visa.
"We were in the understanding that Janeman will be allowed to enter New
Zealand as an individual but
we are completely in the dark as to what has happened." And a late minute
change should see national
coach Billy Singh heading off to Auckland to replace Janeman and meet up with
Fiji FA technical director
Harry Bingham who will also be attending the seminar as a Fiji FA representative.
Post Sports understands that coach Singh holds a multiple visa to enter NZ
which can be used to send
another delegate to the seminar the same way Fiji FA president Sahu Khan entered
NZ a few days ago.
Dr Sahu Khan was not at the official opening of the Fiji Bitter Fiji Fact as
he was away in New Zealand
engaged in "soccer business".
Oceania Football is organising a seminar for soccer development for the region
and all member countries
are expected to attend the weeklong course in Auckland. "It's very unfortunate
for such things to happen
at a time when Fiji FA is committed to the development of soccer in the country
and now we have to miss
out on a seminar which would have helped us in the long run," said Maharaj.
The purpose for the seminar is to allow member draw up a countries uniform
development scheme,
which then can be implemented, across the region. "We have Bingham in New
Zealand after he flew in
from Australia yesterday and all efforts were being made to send Janeman to
attend this important seminar
as he is involved in the development of soccer in the country."
Fiji's Daily Post
THE Reserve Bank of Fiji must remove the commercial banks' lending cap to allow
the private sector to
recover. This was part of proposals put forward by the Suva Chamber of Commerce
before the drafting
of a mini Budget.
The chamber argued that a squeeze on finance would suffocate local business
since most of them are
operating on overdraft facilities. The chamber said the removal of the lending
cap will allow banks to
provide credit facilities for local businesses to recover and rebuild.
However, it said this should be done with the continued control of foreign
reserves. It said the budget
should make provisions for $25 million to be made available immediately to assist
in the recovery and
rehabilitation of central business districts and businesses damaged and pillaged
during the political crisis.
The chamber said the management of government expenses is a priority and the
budget should reflect the
current administration's commitment to this important area by savings specifically
identified and stated.
The tourism budget should be restored to pre-election levels to allow the industry
to counter the negative
publicity.
It should also encourage local governments to reduce their rate demands to
assist businesses and
households to recover from the effects of the disaster. The chamber says it
does not support any increases
in import duties as this would be counter-productive and cause a blowout in
inflation.
"We support the elimination of the three percent duty on raw materials
to assist the manufacturing sector
but the planned increase in import duties to any level above the present should
not be contemplated," said
the chamber.
Fiji's Daily Post
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