Analysis:

Biman Prasad and Sitiveni Rabuka need to realise that all politicians from both the Government and Opposition are subject to public and media scrutiny.

Mr Rabuka and Mr Prasad seem to think that only the Government needs to be scrutinised.

The Government is usually under the microscope. But there are times, like the one we are facing now, that we need to exercise sensitivity and responsibility.

But both Mr Prasad and Mr Rabuka chose to jump on the bandwagon and capitalise on the situation for political gain. That’s pretty obvious. No amount of rationalisation will justify their attempt to defend themselves.

No one begrudges their democratic right to respond to a topical issue. It’s the timing that is the issue here.

The coronavirus situation is fluid. It could go either way and we need to trust our health and medical professionals and our border security authorities to do the right things.

There’s no doubt the Government is preparing for the worst scenario if we get our first confirmed case. It had already said that it was setting up quarantine facilities to roll into operation.

For the rest of us, we just need to monitor the development and do whatever is within our power to follow the advice of the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and do the right things to minimize the risks.

The public and media scrutiny of the Opposition is essential for a robust democracy. If you like it’s a valuable training ground to prepare themselves if they get to form a new Government.

A strong Opposition is good for democracy. What it means is that it can show that it has the ability to effectively run a Government with its original policies.

Mr Rabuka and Mr Prasad should focus on this, not their current antics.

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