PM: Govt MPs must attend next Parliament sitting

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has instructed all government MPs not to travel and to be present throughout the five-day parliamentary sitting beginning next Monday, as the Coalition prepares to table constitutional and electoral amendment bills.

“At the moment I am asking all the members on the government side not to travel and to be present right through the five days of sitting, beginning next week,” Mr Rabuka said.

The PM stressed the critical importance of maintaining full attendance during the sitting.

“It is very important for us to be all present on all sitting days until those bills are brought to Parliament,” Mr Rabuka said.

The Government had failed to pass similar legislation in March by just one vote.

The March 2025 bill fell one vote short when it received 40 votes instead of the required 41 votes for the three-quarters supermajority.

However, the Supreme Court ruled in August that constitutional amendments can proceed with support of two-thirds of Parliament, followed by a majority vote in a national referendum.

This makes amendments more achievable than the previous three-quarters requirement.

The PM also confirmed that a referendum system still needs to be established before amendments can proceed.

“We do not have a referendum system yet, that will be one of the things that will have to be brought in,” he said.

‘FICAC review’

Mr Rabuka also said that any review of the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) would require constitutional amendments, as Section 115 of the Constitution addresses FICAC.

The PM said the government was considering restructuring FICAC to operate within the police force as a specialised unit, similar to how police handle traffic offences and domestic violence.

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