The FijiFirst Government will win the 2022 General Election.
Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama did not mince his words on Sunday when he made the declaration and called out People’s Alliance Party leader Sitiveni Rabuka.
Speaking on the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation Radio Fiji One Nai Lalakai programme, Bainimarama said: “FijiFirst won in the 2014 and 2018 elections, and we will win again in 2022.
“Many will question why I said this. The reason is that my Government has done a lot of developments since 2006.
“Through my leadership we have done a lot of developments around Fiji and we continue to prove our critics wrong.”
He said he was not surprised that Rabuka criticised and badmouthed Government while on a recent visit to Labasa.
“This is nothing new to me and I’m not shocked to hear what he has been saying. There was no transparency during his time in government and that speaks volume of himself. He loves changing his words,” he said.
“He can say something today and tomorrow he will say something else and that is what he is good at. He was talking about reducing civil servants’ salaries and the next day he changed his words again. He keeps changing his words because of politics.
“When he resigned from SODELPA he said that he would not form another party, but later on he registered his new party.
“He told the world that he was leaving politics for good, but he did not. These are some of the things which we can see in him that are inconsistent.”
Bainimarama said while Rabuka was Prime Minister he claimed that 70 percent of top civil servants were from Vanua Levu.
He said this showed that Rabuka still wanted to segregate Fijians based on their provinces.
“He did it in the RFMF and he did it in Government when he was in power, but many Fijians turned their backs on him.
“He claimed that my Government is only run by two people. This is a big lie. How can two people run an entire Government?”
Bainimarama reassured all Fijians that Government would not turn their backs on developments aimed at bettering their livelihoods.
Meanwhile, the people are sick of this Government, they want them out.
This was the comment made by the Opposition member of Parliament Professor Biman Prasad while responding to the Revised 2021-2022 National Budget in Parliament last week.
Professor Prasad said the people’s time was coming.
“How can this Government be trusted to ensure continuity of zero vat on basic food essential items when it betrayed the people after the 2014 elections, in their manifesto, it is clearly stated, they said the Government will never put tax on those basic food items,” he said
“In the 2014 manifesto, FijiFirst promised to keep basic food items and prescription medication VAT-free, yet a year later, Government imposed VAT on them.”
He said for six years, the people had suffered and borne the brunt of the high cost of food and essential items, exacerbated by VAT. “Government rubbished our blueprint to reduce cost of living and raise minimum wage to a living wage.
“So there is nothing that would prevent this heartless Government from re-engining on these pro-people policies yet again should they retain power after elections.
“But this time thankfully, they have lost the trust of the people who will no longer be taken for a joyride by this Government.
“And I say to the Government all of your smooth talk, all your freebies, all your fake likes – nothing will help you.
“The people will speak and you will be sent into the history books,” said Prasad.
SOURCE: FIJI SUN/FIJI TIMES/PACNEWS
