Fiji conducted a general election on September 17, 2014 – the first since the military coup of December 5, 2006 which brought Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama to power. The Fiji Election 2014 has been a resounding success according to the 92-member international Multi-national Observer Group – co-led by Australia, Indonesia and India – that monitored the election. The Observer Group was co-led by Former Australian Government Minister and lawyer, Peter Reith.
Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama was sworn into office on Monday September 22, 2014. He took an oath before President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau after his Party, FijiFirst, secured a majority seats in Fiji’s new parliament.
The 50 Members of the Fijian Parliament will include:
- 32 seats – FijiFirst (FF)
- 15 seats – Social Liberal Democratic Party (SODELPA), and
- 3 seats – National Federation Party (NFP).
The Leader of the Opposition is Ro Teimumu Kepa of SODELPA. Dr Biman Prasad will head the NFP in parliament. The Fiji Labour Party, People’s Democratic Party, One Fiji Party, Fiji United Freedom Party and two independents failed to win any seats in the 2014 election as they did not meet the minimum threshold of 5% of all votes cast.
Fiji’s new Cabinet Ministers were sworn in on Wednesday September 24, 2014. For a solid review of the Fiji election and its aftermath, read Croz Walsh’s post The Week That Was To: September 26.
Fiji was reinstated as a full member of The Commonwealth on September 26, 2014 after a 5 year suspension in 2009, following a decision by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) at their 44th meeting in New York, the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat. Fiji’s reinstatement was in recognition of the credible elections held on 17 September 2014 and the assumption of office by a democratically elected government.
Keep holidaying in Fiji for democracy’s sake >>
(from user Stemoc, Wikimedia Commons Licence)
This song is written and composed by Dharmend Shyam who lives in Auckland New Zealand. It celebrates the victory of Fiji First in the 2014 election as the Victory of Multiracialism in Fiji.
