Don’t play politics with land, NFP leader warns

National Federation Party leader Professor Biman Prasad says control of State land must remain with the State and freehold land with its owners, warning that using land for political gain can harm tenants and the national interest.

In a statement issued on October 14, Professor Prasad said the NFP had defended State and freehold land since the party was founded in 1963. He said freehold ownership was inalienable and could not be taken away from its owner.

“The NFP has never wavered from this position even during and in the aftermath of political upheavals and change of national leadership, both before the last 7 years of Fiji’s colonial rule and after independence”.

Professor Prasad said past NFP leaders had opposed attempts to transfer Crown or State Schedule A and B lands to Native land. He said Prime Ministers Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara and Sitiveni Rabuka had accepted the reasoning that State land should remain under State control for the benefit of disadvantaged groups, particularly tenants.

He cited the Burns Commission Report of 1960 and said that, in February 1999, Mr Rabuka withdrew two Bills concerning the land after receiving correspondence between then Opposition leader Jai Ram Reddy and Ratu Mara.

Professor Prasad said the issue resurfaced under then Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry. His government announced in June 1999 that it would revert State Schedule A and B lands to Native land, and introduced two Bills in October that year. The Bills lapsed after the government was deposed in May 2000 and were reintroduced in April 2002.

He said the proposed changes affected thousands of tenants, with some displaced.

“The lesson this should teach all political leaders and parties is that practicing exploitative politics with land is harmful to the livelihood of tenants and against national interest”.