With the founding members of FijiFirst exiting the party, renowned academic Professor Steven Ratuva said they had not only “abandoned the sinking ship, but also deliberately scuttled and sunk it”.
Prof Ratuva said the mounting issues had become untenable and unsustainable.
“It’s the end of the party,” he said as FijiFirst is expected to be deregistered.
Prof Ratuva also said the stress and strain of the “one vote” scenario to sustain the Coalition Government was gone, with Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka now having several options, including co-opting independent MPs into their ranks.
“The political field is now rife for horse trading and creating new political alliances which we hope can serve all ethnic groups and improve things.”
And while it’s the end for FijiFirst, the political field in Fiji is now open to new alliances.
This was the view expressed by Fijian academic Professor Steven Ratuva following the resignations of former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama, former attorney-general Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and other senior members of FijiFirst.
Prof Ratuva, who is also the director of the University of Canterbury’s Macmillan Brown Centre for Pacific Studies, said there was an increasing complexity regarding the situation.
“They (members) are confronted with layers of issues including the imprisonment of Bainimarama and legal questions about his continued party leadership, fractures within the party and dissension within the ranks as a result of the salary votes,” Prof Ratuva said.
He said there was also a dispute over the legitimacy of the party directive, which included Bainimarama’s controversial signature, and the possibility that more court cases could arise out of these situations.
“These have become untenable and unsustainable for any political party to fathom. It’s the end of the party.”
Prof Ratuva said FijiFirst members of Parliament now had three choices.
“Resign from Parliament too, which I doubt very much; remain as independents or join other political parties.
“Now the stress and strain of the “one vote” scenario to sustain the Government coalition is gone and Rabuka has a number of options, including co-opting independent MPs into their ranks.
“The political field is now rife for horse trading and creating new political alliances which we hope can serve all ethnic groups and improve things.”
He said the demise of FijiFirst marks the end of an era and serves as a lesson that coup ambitions are short-lived and disruptive.
He told the Fiji Times that since FijiFirst members were not able to amend the party constitution, they were headed for deregistration, which would officially end FijiFirst’s decade-long existence after being formed on 31 March 2014.
“This is not just the end of FijiFirst as a political party, it also marks an end to an era of Fiji politics which started during the 2006 coup,” he said.
“It’s a lesson to us all that coup ambitions, whatever the justifications, are short-lived and disruptive and should be discarded into the ash heap of history, never to see the light of day again.”
This turn of events would also undeniably change the landscape of Fiji’s political scene.
Prof Ratuva said since FijiFirst had the largest number of votes, these would naturally be scattered and go to other parties in the next election.
“This will make the next election even more interesting and less predictable, and this will give smaller parties outside Parliament, such as Unity and Fiji Labour Party, a chance to pick up votes and get over the 5 per cent threshold,” he said.
