iTaukei Affairs row over political appointments

The bitter internal rift between the Minister for iTaukei Affairs and his permanent secretary has escalated into a public confrontation, with allegations of political appointments at the centre of the dispute.

In a Facebook post on Monday, permanent secretary Jone Navakamocea accused his line minister, Ifereimi Vasu, of appointing political allies within the ministry, intensifying an already volatile standoff.

“Fiji Sun, please stick to your lane. In the meantime, please ask as many questions of the minister and his political appointees and tell them to tell you the truth, nothing but the truth,” Mr Navakamocea wrote.

Mr Vasu did not respond to calls or messages yesterday.

The dispute has renewed scrutiny of the appointment of a former senior civil servant, previously convicted and jailed over a $28.8 million scam in the early 2000s, before being acquitted by the High Court in Suva in 2019, alongside Mr Vasu on corruption-related charges.

The ministry yesterday threatened legal action against Mr Navakamocea over his public allegations. Mr Vasu denied all claims in a strongly worded statement on official Ministry and Government Facebook pages.

The Public Service Commission (PSC) has also condemned Mr Navakamocea’s social media posts, following earlier warnings over his criticism of Government.

Mr Navakamocea, who was due to return from three weeks’ leave on Monday, said online he would instead resume duties on April 3. Both men are members of the Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA).

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