The Fiji Bus Operators Association (FBOA) is urging the resignation of Fiji Competition and Consumer Commission (FCCC) CEO Joel Abraham, citing issues of unfairness and prolonged delays in addressing bus industry concerns.
FBOA President Richard Lal criticized the FCCC for not responding to or resolving several matters raised by the Association, some of which have been pending for over a year.
Lal pointed out that the FCCC CEO has consistently ignored resolving issues already agreed upon by the Government. This includes reversing the 50 percent discount on schoolchildren’s bus fares, which bus operators have been shouldering for more than 50 years, and which the Government has committed to cover as part of its social responsibility.
“The FCCC’s chief executive should step down due to his ineffectiveness. Although ministers have confirmed and approved that this reversal would take effect from 1 August 2024, the FCCC CEO has failed to announce this and remains silent,” said Lal.
“FCCC cannot impose on bus operators the requirement to discount bus fares for students by 50 percent, as bus companies are privately owned and such support should be the state’s responsibility.”
Additionally, Lal mentioned that Abraham has not corrected a VAT adjustment error that has affected bus operators for over a year. These operators have been unable to recover the losses from this VAT error due to FCCC’s poor decision, leading Lal to claim that Abraham is targeting the industry.
The FBOA has a legal case against the previous Government regarding the inability to appeal FCCC decisions. The current Coalition Government has agreed to resolve this by removing a clause in the FCCC’s legislation that prevents any review of its decisions.
“The so-called ouster clause prevents anyone from challenging FCCC’s decisions, no matter how unfair,” Lal said. “FCCC or any other entity is not above the law, so it is concerning that in a democratic country, we have such an undemocratic clause in the FCCC Act,” he added.