The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) has notified the Fijian Elections Office that it has concluded investigations on three cases referred to it in September 2023. The complaints primarily involved the FijiFirst Party.
One complaint concerned alleged corrupt practices related to the FijiFirst Australia Association Incorporated, specifically involving Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and an individual named Tito Bainimarama. The investigation revealed that the list of donations submitted by the FijiFirst Party to the Registrar of Political Parties from 2015 to 2022 did not include the Fiji First Australia Association, a registered entity in Australia. FICAC attempted to obtain additional documentation from the complainant, Alexandra Forwood, but was unsuccessful as she could not provide any evidence or timelines for the alleged corrupt activities.
Another area of inquiry focused on a potential link between Tito Bainimarama and former FijiFirst Party Leader Voreqe Bainimarama. Investigators found no documentation linking Tito Bainimarama to any of the relevant authorities, leading to the conclusion that he is not the former party leader as alleged.
FICAC also looked into claims against Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and Mohammed Saneem regarding collusion and conflict of interest, as well as allegations against Ariff Ali for making a donation to FijiFirst while being a civil servant. Preliminary findings indicated that neither Sayed-Khaiyum nor Saneem were shareholders of Formscaff (Fiji) Pte Limited and confirmed that the tender process for the contract was properly conducted by the electoral office. Additionally, the tender process for Xiarch Solutions Pvt Ltd, which received a tender for the 2022 General Elections, was also verified to comply with regulations.
Lastly, allegations were made against His Excellency, the President of Fiji, Ratu Wiliame Katonivere, along with Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum and Charan Jeath Singh. A preliminary investigation sought financial information from the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), which provided enough evidence to dismiss the allegations. FICAC confirmed the accuracy of the assets and liabilities reported by the FIU.
Based on the findings from these preliminary inquiries and subsequent legal opinions, FICAC has informed the Supervisor of Elections that no evidence supports the claims made by the complainants, leading to the closure of the cases.