Fiji minister denies government vote-buying

Transcript

Fiji's Minister for Social Welfare, Women and Poverty Alleviation, Jiko Luveni, has denied claims the government is vote-buying in the run up to the polls.

She says her ministry has been working to empower women for several years, opening resource centres, and addressing issues like teenage pregnancy and domestic violence.

She says her work has culminated in a Women's Expo in Suva this week which more than a thousand women from all around Fiji are expected to attend.

Dr Luveni told Sally Round the government has invested thousands in the event which aims to connect women to her Ministry.

JIKO LUVENI: I wanted to build in my mind, my dream, a headquarters for women, and I had the plan, the design that has been there for the last four years. And I had a company that was going to construct it and in my mind part of the construction with this company from China, Shanghai Construction Company, I told them, once we have got this completed, I've got this network of women, I want them all to come to the opening of that building so they can see their headquarters and be more connected with us.

But the construction company were not able to construct because part of the agreement was they would give us a grant, do it free of charge if they are given a project in Fiji a big project where they can make a profit of a few million dollars and they put it into that and that was the plan to have the women coming from all over. But because we were not able to do this, in fact I was in Poland last year, coming back in my mind, I said I just may not win the election and come back but this is a dream that is still on the shelf and I would like to have this happen. I don't have to wait for that construction company. Let's put some budget into this. Let's have it in August and this is why we're having (the Expo) and I know that people are saying this is probably campaign propaganda but what do I say? Let them think what they think. The women are so looking forward to coming and the women think now they are politically mature to make their own decisions. And this is what we have tried to do, build their confidence, to make decisions for themselves.

SALLY ROUND: As the incumbent government you do have the natural advantage and that's understood around the world, incumbent governments do have advantages going into elections, but political parties and other critics are saying this government is taking advantage of that to too great a degree.

JL: Believe me in every election, the current government (before) those elections are always accused of that. Even in the last election, the SDL, there was an agricultural scam that happened at that time just before the election, agriculture products that were being distributed and being given. It happens all the time so I don't know what the people expect of us. Just because we have an election we stop expenditure? We need to expend the budget that is given to us. We need to continue to complete the projects that we have in place. I was talking to two women friends of mine and they were saying, 'you have been working hard Minister' and I said I have to complete the programmes and the projects that I have in place for this year and this is why I am going around opening resource centres and launching income generating projects here and there and I said to them 'what do you expect me to do, just because elections are coming, do I stop?' So what happens to the money? It might go back. Women, they need this money and the requests keep coming in. It's the same thing with other ministries as well. It happens in every election. The current government is always accused of doing what they have been doing in the past few years.

SR: Do you see any conflict of interest in the FijiFirst Party members, for example your General Secretary Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, also being Minister of Elections?

JL: Past ministers, prime ministers ... (Laisenia) Qarase ... they were the Minister of Elections at that time. Why didn't they bring it up at that time. Even (Sitiveni) Rabuka when he was minister, he was Minister of Elections, he was the one in charge of the electoral process.

SR: So do you think there's no conflict of interest in that role?

JL: There's no conflict of interest because we have an (Electoral Commission) and they have been selected for their integrity. Actually they belong to different parties and we know the members of the Electoral Commission. So they were selected to come in so that they can (give) balanced decisions and it's very clear even to us  that some of these people belong to different parties but that makes it more balanced and we are counting on them to be very balanced also in the decisions they make in this election.