SEEP: Taxpayers who funded constitution review deserve to see report

Fijians helped pay for the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) process and contributed their views during consultations, so they deserve to see the outcome, the Social Empowerment Education Programme (SEEP) says.

SEEP executive director Chantelle Khan said the use of taxpayers’ money created a strong public interest in transparency and accountability, as the full CRC report remains unavailable to the public.

“So, there are a few concerns. Fijians, through taxpayers' money, have helped fund a process that was established to review the country's Constitution. Additionally, the Commission carried out consultations and received views from members of the public and different groups during its work. We believe that people who contributed to the process should be able to see the outcome”, Ms Khan stressed.

The CRC handed its Review Report and Draft Constitution Amendment Bill to President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu on August 31.

SEEP is questioning the lack of transparency surrounding the handover and has called for the full report to be released immediately.

Ms Khan said SEEP was not taking a position on whether the CRC recommendations should be accepted or rejected.

“This is not about accepting or rejecting CRC recommendations. Rather, SEEP believes that people should first be given the opportunity to see the full report and understand the recommendations before forming their own views. The public deserves the full information instead of it being meted out in bits and pieces as though serving an agenda we cannot yet see”, she added.

People must participate

SEEP said ordinary Fijians must have a meaningful opportunity to participate in the next stage of the constitutional review process.

This includes young people, women, persons with disabilities, community groups, civil society organisations, traditional leaders, faith-based organisations, workers, businesses and other members of society.

“Everyone has a say in the Constitution because it affects the way the country is governed and the rights and responsibilities of its citizens,” said Executive Director Chantelle Khan.

She said meaningful participation depended on people having access to information about what had been proposed.

“People cannot meaningfully participate in decisions that affect their future if they do not have access to the information. Empowering people begins with giving them information. It encourages an open, transparent and inclusive process where every Fijian has an opportunity to understand and contribute to the discussion about our constitutional future”, Ms Khan said.

SEEP also called for greater transparency around the wider constitutional review process and encouraged Government and other stakeholders to ensure the public and media could follow and understand it.

The organisation said openness would help build public trust, reduce misinformation and support informed national discussion.

‘Make the full report public’

SEEP warned that keeping the full report from the public could create confusion and unnecessary concern as people turned to other sources for information about its contents.

“When people do not have access to the full information, they are left to fill in the gaps turning to various sources that can make it difficult for ordinary citizens to understand what has actually been proposed. Make the full report public immediately so that our people can read it for themselves and make informed decisions”, she said.

The full CRC report has not yet been made available to the public.