The Supervisor of Elections has referred the National Federation Party [‘NFP’] to the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption [‘FICAC’] for breach of Section 144A of the Electoral Act 2014.
On 26 July 2022, the Supervisor had issued a Notice to the General Secretary of NFP to remove a video from the NFP Facebook page which contained false information. The false statements were made at 43.33 to 44.54 of the video and it can be accessed on the following link:
The video contained a false statement or information that was designed to mislead Fijians into believing that the Tertiary Education Loan Scheme is a form of slavery and that students will not be able to travel Overseas unless their Guarantors have cleared their debts. The NFP was informed that the Tertiary Education Loans Schemes Regulations 2022 have clearly laid out the policies for Loan Repayment and Permission to Travel Abroad in sections 27 and 30 respectively.
Despite the fact that the video was made in 2018 and given that it is publicly posted on the NFP Facebook Page, it continues to present opportunities to mislead people.
The Supervisor had given NFP a deadline to comply and they failed to do so and as such the breach has now been referred to FICAC for its necessary actions.
“NFP’s refusal to remove the video from its Facebook Page shows a flagrant disregard for electoral laws and also proves that they are willing to promote false statements to the public,” the Supervisor said.
The FEO reminds all political parties and their representatives to ensure that the information that they convey to the members of the public during campaign is accurate and substantiated by evidence and facts for a free and fair 2022 General Election.
