SUVA – The next general elections should be held this year under the 1997 Constitution so that constitutional changes can proceed under an elected government, former prime minister and leader of the Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua party Laisenia Qarase said.
“This would be the best option for Fiji,” he said in a statement to the media. Qarase maintained the status of the 1997 Constitution was still in place.
Qarase said government had reversed the accepted order of things with the announcement of key principles and values to be embodied in the constitution along with the appointment of the Constitutional Commission.
“These important decisions should be the outcome of intensive consultations with key stakeholders and not unilateral decisions by the government,” he said.
He said the formation of a constitutional forum should include key stakeholders, including political parties, church leaders and non-governmental organisations.
“This forum should discuss and decide on key issues relating to the constitutional consultations process and provide guidance to the process itself,” he said.
But Attorney-General and acting Prime Minister Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said some politicians were looking backward, “caught in a time warp where nepotism, elitism and racism were the norm”.
Responding to questions from The Fiji Times yesterday, Sayed-Khaiyum said there were voices that echoed from that past, for those who sought to regain power and take Fiji back to the dark ages.
