Top FICAC job under fire

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka stands by the appointment of Acting Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) Commissioner Lavi Rokoika, dismissing claims of any wrongdoing in the process.

The appointment, which bypassed the usual constitutional procedures, has drawn public attention and debate.

When pressed on the matter, Mr Rabuka said: “We had made the appointment, and because we didn’t get the cooperation of the Judicial Services Commission, we could not progress it that way. So, we progressed it through the direct recommendation from the Prime Minister to the President.

“If the appointment was unlawful, then the court would have to decide,” he said.

A statement from the Prime Minister on May 29, 2025, outlined the dismissal of former FICAC Commissioner Barbara Malimali, and the appointment of Ms Rokoika, carried out on the PM’s advice to the President, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu.

Ms Malimali is challenging her dismissal in court following a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) recommendation that her appointment be revoked as unlawful.

The legal challenge now places the matter before the courts, leaving the final decision on the lawfulness of the appointment to the judiciary.

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