Presidental battle

Possible rift within the Prime Minister’s The People’s Alli­ance (PA) party may have led to the delayed Presidential nomination in Parliament yesterday.

The nomination for the appoint­ment of the new President was list­ed as item number four on the order paper but was withdrawn unexpect­edly after the Government’s nomi­nee sparked disagreement among party members.

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, who has remained tight-lipped about his preferred candidate, con­firmed there were concerns raised about some of the proposed names.

“I will not divulge details, but suf­fice to say that there was some dis­comfort with the nominees, which was brought to my attention by the Honourable Speaker,” Mr Rabuka said.

“I asked if I could withdraw my nomination, and he probably spoke to the Leader of Opposition as well. In fairness to both sides, we could not proceed while there were clouds over the nominees.”

Sources indicate that the Govern­ment initially favoured Ratu Wil­iame Katonivere, with support ex­pected from the Group of Nine bloc, led by Ioane Naivalurua.

However, internal factions within the PA party are pushing for other candidates, including Ratu Epenisa Cakobau (The Vunivalu) and Ratu Vuniyani Navuniuci (Tui Nadi), brought up during the the party’s recent annual general assembly that took place in the West.

This musthead also understands other parties in the coalition have endorsed the PM’s recommenda­tion for the extension of the cur­rent term of the Tui Macuata, Ratu Willame Katonivere, as President of the Republic of Fiji.

Ratu Vuniyani, a prominent con­tender, revealed he was unaware of his nomination but acknowledged receiving backing from the PA members in the Central, Eastern, and Western divisions.

“When I was informed that three divisions had nominated me, I chose not to turn them down,” Ratu Vuniyani said.

“In my heart, I knew I was going to be nominated to be the President of Fiji, and I was ready to take that position.”

His recent resignation as party president during the PA’s executive council meeting has further fuelled speculation about his candidacy.