FICAC investigator tells court Khaiyum swore while reading tender probe report

A former Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) investigator told the High Court in Suva that former Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum swore while reading an investigation report into a controversial health procurement tender.

Alivereti Wakanivesi, the second State witness in the Health Tender trial, gave the evidence during the second day of proceedings yesterday.

The report relates to allegations against former Health Minister Dr Neil Sharma, who is accused of manipulating the procurement tender process.

It is further alleged that Mr Sayed-Khaiyum and former prime minister Voreqe Bainimarama allowed a waiver in the tender process.

During examination-in-chief, Wakanivesi told the court he was part of a FICAC team that presented the investigation report to Mr Sayed-Khaiyum at his office at Suvavou House.

He said Mr Sayed-Khaiyum read through the report while investigators presented their findings.

When asked by the State about Mr Sayed-Khaiyum’s reaction, Wakanivesi said he swore at the report, closed it and remarked: “What a way to start the prayers.”

Wakanivesi also testified that search warrants obtained during the investigation were executed at Fiji Pharmaceutical & Biomedical Services, the Fiji Procurement Office, Vodafone Fiji Limited, the Ministry of Health and the Colonial War Memorial Hospital.

He told the court that investigators also made inquiries with the Prime Minister’s Office and were later provided with two letters relating to waiver requests from the Health Ministry for procurement tenders.

According to Wakanivesi, Dr Sharma denied the first waiver request but approved the second without proper consultation.

The State tendered 23 documents in court from more than 50 documents intended to be presented through the witness.

However, Dr Sharma’s lawyer Wylie Clarke raised continuous objections, arguing that the way the State tendered the documents did not comply with the basic rules governing the admission of evidence.

Counsel for Mr Sayed-Khaiyum and Mr Bainimarama, Devanesh Sharma, supported the objection, arguing that although Wakanivesi was the investigator, he was not the author of the documents seized.

Both defence lawyers argued that the evidence must be tendered properly.

The trial continues today.