Page 10 - IB September 2018 Edition

Political Brief - FIJI

with

Fiji PM Bainimarama urges action

LISTEN and act now ambition.
was the message the “We must get the message out loud and clear that our
President of COP23 and current Nationally Determined Contributions to reduce
Fijian Prime Minister greenhouse gas emissions made under the Paris Agree-
Frank Bainimarama ment fall far short of the target of limiting global warming
told leaders at the Glob- to 1.5 degrees Celsius above that of the pre-industrial age.
al Climate Action Sum- “Part of the reason for this is because many NDCs do
mit held in in San Fran- not incorporate the best ideas and solutions that are being
cisco early this month. implemented at the sub-national level. This needs to change,
Bainimarama told and in this regard, I’m encouraged by many of the steps
delegates to implement being taken here in San Francisco this week.
the ideas they have “The whole idea of the Talanoa Dialogues – here and
gathered, on behalf of all over the world since May and in the months ahead - is
the 7.5 billion people to swap best practices and canvass ways of raising our
who call this planet collective ambition. To lay the groundwork so that when
home. political leaders gather at COP24 this December, they are
He says the Pacific way of story-telling, the Talanoa Dia- able to signal their commitment to stepping up ambition,”
logue, brings the horrific tales from the islands and allows said PM Bainimarama.
leaders to understand how they can be more ambitious in He said a commitment that by the time the nations of the
collective responses to climate change. world convene again in New York next September for the
The COP23 President told the leaders the idea behind the UN summit to review the progress made since Paris, the
dialogues are to swap best practices and canvass ways of existing NDCs are revised resolutely upwards.
raising our collective ambition. “Now, more than ever, we must shift the current global
Bainimarama says this platform sets the groundwork debate to the opportunities that will flow with imagination,
for when political leaders will meet at COP24 in December, ingenuity and political will. And create an unstoppable force
so they are able to signal their commitment to stepping up for change,” he said. (Pacnews)

President gets another 3 year term Conduct, Funding and Disclosures Act of 2013. Meanwhile,
FIJIAN President, Major- General Jioje Konrote, was reappoint- Rabuka has clarified that a proposed party leader can only be
ed for a three year term but only after Opposition Leader Ro elected by the party management board. Speaking after his
Teimumu Kepa led her Social Democratic Liberal Party out of court case, Rabuka says the party’s different branches can
the house in protest against the election. SODELPA MP Semesa submit names to the board and the final decision whether an
Karavaki had earlier raised a point of order claiming the elec- appointment should be made lies with the Board.
tion contravenes Section 84 of the Constitution. Karavaki said
there was no vacancy as Konrote term had not expired. He said
it would be unconstitutional to elect a President before October Obituary
6 when Konrote’s term expired. Speaker Dr Jiko Luveni rules
against the point of order. Konrote was then nominated by Former Fiji’s finance minister passes away
Prime Minister Rear-Admiral Frank Baimimarama. There was Former reserve Bank of Fiji Governor and
no other nomination. Under the Constitution only the Prime politician, ratu Jone Yavala Kubuabola has
Minister and Leader of the Opposition make nominations. By passed away after a short illness. He was 72.
law, Fiji’s president is elected and appointed by Parliament. ratu Jone is the older brother of current defence
Konrote, a career army officer and later MP for the ruling Fiji minister ratu Inoke Kubuabola, and served as
First Party initially entered Parliament in 2006 with Prime finance minister under the government of Prime
Minister Laisenia Qarase and the Social Democratic Liberal minister Laisenia Qarase from 2000 until the
Party. (IB Online) coup of December 2006. He was the longest
serving Governor of the reserve Bank of Fiji before that. He
SODELPA leader’s case deferred also served as permanent secretary of finance. ratu Jone
FIJI’S Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA) Leader Si- began his career in Fiji’s public service working as a weather
tiveni Rabuka’s case has been deferred to 24 September. The forecaster with the Fiji meteorological Service. His family are
case was called for mention at the Suva Magistrates Court early from the same chiefly clan as ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu, the
this month and because the Magistrate was not present in paramount chief of the Tovata Confederacy and president of
Court the matter has been deferred. Rabuka has been charged the opposition’s SoDeLPA Party. ratu Jone was laid to rest in
by FICAC under Section 24 of the Political Parties Registration, Suva on 18 September.

10 Islands Business, September 2018