Pulewai Speaks Out

Former Acting Deputy Com­missioner of the Fiji Inde­pendent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC), Francis Pul­ewai, has spoken out for the first time about her departure and the recent controversial appointment of FICAC Commissioner Barbara Malimali.

Speaking from Australia, Ms Pule­wai expressed deep disappointment over how her situation was han­dled, describing it as an attempt by the institution she sought to serve to "victimise" her for simply doing her job.

"It was really disappointing to me to see that the very arm of Govern­ment I was hoping would uphold the rule of law and do the right thing were the very people who, I would say, victim­ised me for just do­ing my job," Ms Pul­ewai said.

"It looked like they were looking for a way out, and they thought it was me-they thought I’m the one they can literally put the blame on.”

Rushed appointment raises questions

Ms Pulewai questioned the haste surrounding Ms Malimali’s ap-pointment while she was still under investigation.

“The question that needs to be asked is, why was the appointment rushed when the person appointed was still being investigated? That’s the bottom-line question,” she said.

On 28 August, Ms Pulewai received information that Ms Malimali was the successful applicant for the FICAC Commissioner role.

She subsequently wrote to the President on August 30, highlight-ing the pending investigation against Ms Malimali and urging caution in confirming her appointment.

“On 3 September, I received a call from the Attorney-General regarding Ms Malimali’s situation. He asked if there was an ongoing investigation in my office, to which I confirmed there was,” Ms Pulewai said.

“I informed him that we were close to concluding it that week, and if charges were warranted, we would proceed; otherwise, we would close the case.”

Despite the ongoing investigation, Ms Malimali was appointed on September 4 by President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere, on the recom- mendation of the Judicial Services Commission.

Since the Barbara-gate saga unfolded the Attorney-General Graham Leung, Minister for Justice Siromi Turaga and the Judicial Services Commission have all issued statements.

Concerns over appointment process

Ms Pulewai revealed that she was not informed when the Chief Registrar instructed the Human Resources Manager to gather all Heads of Departments and staff for a formal introduction of the new Commissioner.

“I thought, why didn’t they call me to inform me about this? It was done in a manner that was just not right,” she said.

Ms Pulewai added some managers had raised concerns about having Ms Malimali, a person under investigation, now appointed as their head.

“If the process had been allowed to go through and Ms Malimali was in the clear, I would have had no issue with her appointment.

“My problem is that no due diligence was conducted by those mak-ing the appointment to contact me about the ongoing investigation.”

Clarification on Malimali’s detainment

Responding to reports that Ms Malimali was detained by FICAC the morning after her appointment, Ms Pulewai clarified this was a misconception.

She explained that her team had been tasked to bring in Deputy Prime Minister Biman Prasad for questioning the following day, and Ms Malimali’s detainment occurred only after she declined an invitation to be interviewed.

“The misconception is that we arrested her. She was invited for the interview, and when she refused, that’s when the team proceeded to detain her,” Ms Pulewai said.

“I’m surprised that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), John Rabuku, assessed the file despite having a conflict of interest. He said the file was incomplete, which is true, as Ms Malimali was yet to be interviewed.”

Claims of usurping power

Ms Pulewai defended her actions, saying that as Acting Deputy Commissioner, she had the same authority as Ms Malimali to investigate and prosecute cases.

“The Prime Minister was not even aware that she had resigned from the Electoral Commission (EC) before she was appointed because the PM, as chair of the Constitutional Offices Commission, was not notified of her resignation.”

Biman Prasad charges

Ms Pulewai confirmed charges against Mr Prasad had already been drafted, and there were clear breaches identified.

“The evidence will speak for itself. The beauty of fraud cases is that it is all documented. If some-thing false is stated on paper, then it is a clear breach of the Political Parties Act.”

She dismissed Mr Prasad’s claim that the accusations were “baseless”, asserting that the matter should be determined in court.

“Allow the process to go ahead and let the court decide whether they agree with our case or not.”

Mr Biman Prasad has steered cleared of comments and insist that his lawyers are on top of things.

Questions over the complainant

Addressing concerns raised over the complainant’s citizenship sta-tus, Ms Pulewai said that irrespective of race or citizenship, anyone could file a complaint.

“The complaint we received was backed by documents and evidence. We treat all complaints equally because the public is trusting the system when they file these reports. Brushing such complaints aside is simply sad.”

Plea for transparency and security concerns

Ms Pulewai described the situation at FICAC as chaotic and made a plea for transparency and accountability.

“All this could have been avoided if they paused the appointment and allowed us to conclude the investigation. It’s a mess,” she said, urging the Prime Minister to let the board of inquiry proceed to uncover any irregularities in the appointment process.

She also claimed she was receiving direct and indirect threats since her departure.

“When we were leaving for Australia, our vehicle tyre got punctured, and we found out that the tyres were slashed. I haven’t heard anything from the police, so we’ll just have to wait and see,” she said.

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