Former Fiji Secretary General says Govt should facilitate tours

Transcript

A former Fiji Secretary General of Parliament says the opposition leader should be able to make trips and visit civil servants.

The Government has claimed Ro Teimumu Kepa should have sought the sanction of Parliament before her recent trip to the north, during which civil servants were banned from welcoming her.

While a legal expert in New Zealand says the visits could have compromised the civil servants, Mary Chapman says their impartiality means they should welcome all MPs and would know what can and cannot be divulged.

She told Alex Perrottet the government shouldn't hinder such trips.

MARY CHAPMAN: The former leader of the opposition that I've worked under, they didn't have to ask the approval of parliament, we didn't have to veto in parliament or approve in parliament, and didn't have to get an approval from the secretary general or the speaker. Of course the speaker would be informed that in the case of meetings or things like that they won't be available in parliament. But normally the parliamentary secretary general, the speaker doesn't have to give any approval, or the house, so I'm a bit confused as to why the leader of the opposition has to get approval.

ALEX PERROTTET: Do you see that this tour that Ro Teimumu did to the northern division is simply a case of fulfilling her role and popping in and making courtesy calls to some of these places where civil servants are working, or provincial administrators are and do you see that as par for the course as well?

MC: Well making courtesy calls on the commissioner, we used to call them commissioner or divisions in those days in the older parliament, but now they are provincial administrators. Yes, when paying courtesy calls, civil servants are supposed to be impartial so they should receive members of parliament, and receive and advise and give information, barring the secrets and the confidential information that civil servants are covered by. It's never happened in the old parliament, I've never seen it in the old parliament, and I've worked in parliament for quite a long time. It's always been a courtesy, that the government went out of its way to make the opposition's visits, they support the trips if they want to go to look at things.

AP: I mean would it be fair to say that you're a bit concerned at the government's reaction? I mean obviously the opposition are annoyed and they're saying the government fears the opposition going out to these places and seeing what's going on and they don't facilitate it.

MC: Yes, that's a bit odd, they should facilitate it, I mean they're the government. When I was secretary general we would ensure, I would ensure that the staff of parliament made sure that everything is facilitated for the opposition to help them. Help them more than the government, because the government is our government - as civil servants, that's our government. But we will help out the opposition, facilitate their trips, whatever they want, as long as they're not seen as campaigning.