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The Fiji National Provident Fund (FNPF) is the bulwark of Fiji’s financial system and should never be allowed to fail as it is the custodian of the hard earned savings of every working person in Fiji.
Most importantly, the rights of every pensioner should never be compromised or interfered with.
Funds accumulated will be made available to donors based on their contributions and thoughtful guidelines established by the Board of Trustees.
The FNPF was established in Fiji before independence when there was a membership system of government. In 1965, Hon AD Patel, Member of the Department of Social Services (Ratu Mara was the Chief Minister) introduced a bill in the Legislative Assembly that led to the birth of the FNPF, with the first Chief Executive being Hugh Robinson, who provided outstanding leadership.
Mr Robinson was followed by the very cautious Lionel Yee as president, who guarded the FNPF like a legendary temple dog, ensuring that the funds were kept safe.
Contributors who have reached retirement age are happy with the rules because they are followed eagerly.
Successive governments have protected and preserved the FNPF funds and strictly followed the laws governing contributions and pension fund payments and observed ethical standards.
A series of coups have not disrupted these funds, and the FNPF board is made up of business, union and government representatives, and donors feel comfortable knowing they have representatives on the board to protect their interests.
Then, in 2006, there was a coup, and the FijiFirst government (unelected) began interfering with FNPF board representation and appointing their lackeys, who quickly abandoned their independent thinking. In 2011, a decree was enacted without any consultation, nominally to structurally reform the FNPF, but buried within the decree was a 50% cut in pensions for a group of senior citizens, an illegal decree based on the assumption that if they did not take this step, the FNPF would go bankrupt, a very untenable view.
There is no such danger, FB and ASK have no power to take such action, and the current government must not trust this decree.
Furthermore, to protect this grave violation, they legislated that the decree could not be challenged in court, thus one illegal act was protected by another illegal legislation.
The 2013 Constitution again gave them unfettered powers and they took actions they had no right to take.
FNPF is the people’s money. Who are Voreqe Bainimarama and Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum to decide the fate of FNPF without the approval of Parliament and why do the lackeys in the board acquiesce to them.
Furthermore, the so-called Minister of Economy (an exaggerated title) used the FNPF as his own piggy bank, buying up hotels from Suva to Denarau and investing in airlines, trapping the FNPF in investments that were not in the best interests of pensioners.
The so-called minister frequently travelled to India on the pretext of attracting Bollywood producers to Fiji but every Bollywood trip failed.
They have created a level of debt unprecedented in Fiji’s history. We know that debt equals slavery, and as President Andrew Jackson wisely noted, “When you are in debt, you are a slave”.
The debt was created deliberately, purposefully, and intentionally to enslave the nation.
Today, the finance minister faces the daunting task of getting out of the massive debt created by Mr. Sayyid Khayyum.
If Fiji First wins the last election in 2022, it will be the last straw and it will be a disaster for Fiji.
Fortunately, the counting machines in Pakistan failed and today we are finally free from the rule of a dictator who never has and never has the habit of losing.
More importantly, the 2013 Constitution confirms a foolish provision in the Constitution that leaves a section of the elderly to suffer.
The FNPF should look after the interests of all contributors.
We then had the hard-working Finance Minister announce that the cuts to pensions would be restored to normal from 1 August 2024 – thank you Minister, but your action was certainly half-hearted.
Why did you believe this wrongful decree from 2011?
How can you address or absolve FFP of serious crimes and give a half-hearted solution – it is unacceptable.
So what about the legal rights of senior citizens since 2012? The FNPF is using these funds which do not belong to them and has enough reserves to cover such a meagre expenditure.
Minister, why do you want to recognise the wrong decree issued by the FFP in 2011 and only then restore rights from 1 August 2024 – this is not the answer.
The Fiji Times Editor-in-Chief Fred Wesley brilliantly stated in his editorial that the Fiji National Police Front must do the right thing. The Fiji National Police Front and the Minister must listen to Fred Wesley because he represents the voice of the people.
The FNPF has no right to sit on funds belonging to senior citizens and use them for its own personal gain, making lucrative profits at the expense of senior citizens.
The FNPF must do the right thing and immediately repay the senior citizens what they are owed without hesitation.
We see a very glamorous picture: Chairman Dak Patel in a coat and tie, boasting about the profits made by the FNPF while using the funds of senior citizens who have been deprived of their fair share.
Now is the time for FNPF to:
Do the right thing;
Restore its credibility;
Take care of the interests of all contributors and pay for legal rights; and
Be aware and do the right thing for all retirees.
The FNP cannot hide behind the authoritarian, wrongful and illegal decree of 2011 and use the powers granted by the illegal 2013 constitution.
AD Patel, Ratu Mara, Sitiveni Rabuka, Mahendra Chaudhry, Dr Timoci Bavadra and Lai Qarase all allowed the FNPF to operate completely independently.
The illegal regime of the FFP allegedly did itself many illegal things, one of which was to cut the benefits provided by the FNPF to the elderly.
The Treasurer will not give us half-measures – seniors need a full recovery. The Prime Minister and all Ministers must support the Treasurer in this.
The current board seems complacent about using funds that do not belong to them.
Clearly, the current board is not playing fair and pretending to turn a blind eye to the mistakes of FFP.
It appears that they abide by and support the decree issued by Mr Bainimarama and Mr Sayyid Khayyum in 2011.
That being the case, the entire board of FNPF should resign on principle and a new board with heart and soul should be formed to correct past mistakes.
We need to take action instead of procrastinating.
We must listen to the plight of the elderly and we are well aware that, unlike the FFP, the Rabuka government has a kind heart.
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