Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has indicated that he would not hesitate to demote Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Biman Prasad to the backbench if he is charged by the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC). Mr. Prasad is currently under investigation for allegedly failing to declare all his assets, income, and liabilities prior to the last election.
Rabuka noted that he has previously set such a precedent when he demoted former Minister for Fisheries, Kalaveti Ravu, to the backbench.
On the same day, Francis Puleiwai, who had resigned unexpectedly as Deputy FICAC Commissioner, approved Mr. Prasad’s arrest. Rabuka mentioned, “Yes, that is the standing procedure with me, and Professor Biman Prasad had already briefed me on the possibility. There is nothing executive about that; that’s what she has said to the media. It did not come to us that he had been arrested. As soon as he is arrested, it will come to me, and when he is charged, he will have to comply with the laws.”
In response, Mr. Prasad stated that the case is now in the hands of his lawyer and he would refrain from making further comments. “My lawyers have been handling the complaint from the beginning and have communicated with FICAC, making it clear that there is no basis in the allegation and no basis of charge. That’s where the matter ends for me,” he said.
Fiji Sun has reached out to the newly appointed FICAC Commissioner Barbara Malimali regarding whether she plans to reassess Mr. Prasad’s charges, but she had not responded by the time of publication.
Furthermore, Ms. Malimali is the second individual to be appointed to the significant position, following Rashmi Aslam, who was FICAC’s first commissioner after its establishment in 2007 and held the role since 2012.