Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has indicated he would not hesitate to demote Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Biman Prasad to the backbench if he faces charges from the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC). Prasad is currently under investigation by FICAC for allegedly failing to declare all his assets, income, and liabilities prior to the last election.
Rabuka mentioned he had set a precedent in a similar situation with former Minister for Fisheries, who is now a backbencher, Kalaveti Ravu. The former Deputy FICAC Commissioner, Francis Puleiwai, who unexpectedly resigned on Thursday, had approved Prasad’s arrest on the same day.
Rabuka stated, “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 carry out what is stated in the laws.”
Prasad, for his part, has deferred to his lawyer regarding the matter and stated he would not make any further comments. “As I said, my lawyers have been handling the complaint from the beginning, and have communicated with FICAC, making it very clear that there is no basis in the allegation and no basis for a charge. That’s where the matter ends for me, and I don’t wish to make any further comments.”
The Fiji Sun reached out to newly appointed FICAC Commissioner Barbara Malimali for an update on whether she would reassess Prasad’s charges, but she had yet to respond at the time of reporting. Malimali is the second person to fill this significant position, following Rashmi Aslam, the first FICAC Commissioner since its establishment in 2007. Aslam took on the role in 2012.