‘A worrying signal’: Seruiratu slams sugar portfolio merger

Opposition Leader Inia Seruiratu has raised serious concerns over the Prime Minister’s decision to merge the sugar portfolio with the Ministry of Agriculture following the latest Cabinet reshuffle.

In a statement yesterday, Mr Seruiratu said the move signalled a worrying lack of focus on an industry that has long been recognised as strategically important to Fiji’s economy.

“For decades, sugar was a standalone ministerial portfolio for good reason,” he said.

“The sugar industry is not just another agricultural sector. It sustains the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Fijians, including cane farmers, lorry drivers, mill workers, landowners and entire rural communities across the sugar belt.”

Under the reshuffle, responsibility for sugar now falls under the Agriculture Ministry, overseen by Minister Tomasi Tunabuna.

Mr Seruiratu said the industry was already under severe pressure and required dedicated leadership and sector-specific expertise.

“The challenges facing sugar — declining productivity, rising costs, farmer exits, mill inefficiencies and the absence of long-term reform — demand focused attention, not divided oversight,” he said.

He also criticised the overall strength of Cabinet, claiming some ministers lacked the technical experience needed to manage complex sectors such as sugar.

Mr Seruiratu further questioned the Government’s commitment to reform, pointing to delays surrounding the Special Parliamentary Committee on Sugar.

He said Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka had moved the motion to establish the committee and secured Parliament’s approval for it to report back by the November sitting.

“That deadline has come and gone. No report has been tabled, and no explanation has been provided to Parliament or to the people of Fiji,” Mr Seruiratu said.

He described the failure to table the report as a lack of political will and said farmers and workers deserved answers.

“If the Government is serious about the future of sugar, it must demonstrate leadership, honour parliamentary mandates and place the industry at the centre of national economic planning,” he said.

Mr Seruiratu said he would continue to push for accountability, transparency and urgent action in Parliament on behalf of those whose livelihoods depend on the sugar industry.