Speech by Mr. Savenaca Narube, Leader of Unity Fiji
I join the earlier speakers in welcoming you to this celebration. It is yet another milestone in the young history of Unity Fiji. I am delighted that you are able to join us on this occasion. A warm welcome to our volunteers, and I see a few tonight, that helped us register as a political party.
I know some of you are here tonight out of curiosity of what this Movement is all about. Some are here to spy on us and report back to their own parties—that’s all right! But I hope that many of you are here tonight because you fully support our cause. And what is that cause? To put it very succinctly—we want to put people first.
I am sacrificing a lot to be in politics. I have achieved all that I wanted to achieve in my professional life. I was fortunate to have risen to the top jobs in the country. I have worked in the top international organisations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. I am therefore not here for myself. Given my experience working alongside three Prime Ministers and Ministers of Finance, I vowed never to become a politician. But I am here because I passionately believe that we should restore the country to the people. I believe in a democracy that is by the people and for the people. We, the people, elect our government. The Government must in turn serve, not itself, but the people. That is true democracy that I and Unity Fiji promise to bring to the people. Our promise is to serve your interests—not our interest, not the interest of the Party, and not any other interest.
I particularly want to put things right for the young people of Fiji. We, as your parents and grandparents, are responsible for your future. I, as a farther grandfather, take this responsibility very seriously. We must avoid populist policies that will burden our young people in future. Instead, we must act responsibly and set policies that build a better country for our young people.
I wish to tell the young people tonight that Unity Fiji will create an environment that allows you to realise your full potential. Jobs are important. Unity Fiji will build a strong economy that will produce more jobs. As a former Governor of the Reserve Bank of Fiji and Permanente Secretary of Finance, I know how to manage and grow Fiji’s economy. In the 2000 and 2006 coups, I held the economy together at very difficult times. I protected our financial position that allowed the country to bounce back very quickly after these crises. So, you can trust Unity Fiji to do a much better job in developing the country and, very importantly, doing so responsibly.
I have received positive feedbacks on my three articles in the Fiji Times about the very high risk of a fiscal crisis. This is real. It is not fair to burden our young people with the adjustments that will be needed to stabilize our financial position in future. They don’t deserve to pay for our excesses. Unity Fiji has the experience and skills to manage our financial position prudently. We will strengthen our financial position so we are able to withstand possible future shocks.
Like many parents. I always urge our young people to dream big. To realise that dream, there is no substitute for hard work and perseverance. Nothing in this world comes free. We pay for the low-quality expenses and freebies by Government. It’s our hard-earned taxpayers’ monies that are being given as freebies—government itself does not have any money. But the important thing is this--relying on handouts lowers our integrity, destroys initiative, and shatters dreams. Unity Fiji will help you realise those dreams by giving you a Fiji that is freer and fairer.
Let me tell you tonight that Unity Fiji has a clear vision of “Unity in Diversity”. We want to remove policies and politics that divide us. You, the youths, will carry the large costs of these divisive policies for ever—yes, for ever! We want to build true unity that comes from sharing and owning this Vision of Unity in Diversity. We recognize the reality that each of us has our own identity that defines us as a people. Identities define ethnicity. You cannot splice them apart. Each ethnic group has different concerns. This is reality. The people have told us strongly that they value their identities and want to retain them.
Unity Fiji will address ethnic concerns openly whether they are perceived or real. This is healthy. When we discuss these concerns openly and with the goodwill of the people that abounds in our culture and from the filter of building unity, we give ourselves a better chance of building a united nation—one that we will be proud to give as a legacy to our young people. A happy nation is a united one. A united nation is a safer one. A safer nation is prosperous one.
Let me tell our young people that there is a much better alternative for you--where there is freedom, fairness, and accountability. Unity Fiji wants to achieve that scenario for you. Fiji is a beautiful country. The people are its greatest assets. But tragically, it is the politics that have destroyed us. Unity Fiji is committed to building a greater Fiji. This is one of the reasons why we have formed this new Party—to build a better Fiji for you to bring up your children, build your lives, and realise your dreams.
People have told me so many times not to be involved in politics. They warned me that it is too dangerous, too vindictive, and too unfair. They said that my reputation and family will come under attack. While these are the norms in politics, sadly Fiji has taken it to a very low level. In my consultations with people, I am saddened to hear that they will not openly support their preferred political choice because they fear persecutions. It is so tragic to see our beloved Fiji—"the way the world should be” --stoop to this level.
But I cannot remain on the side line without trying to do some thing that will change the direction of our beloved country. I owe it to my three grandsons and three granddaughters. I am no Saint by any means. I have my faults and shortcomings. But I am passionate in what I am trying to do. I am prepared to make the sacrifices.
Some people have told me that they are contented with what they have been given and they leave the fight for change to others like me. I respect that choice. But I have told them that they will get the Government that they deserve. There is a huge cost of doing nothing. I repeat—doing nothing is not costless. And more dangerously, these costs are rising over time. Who will bear these costs? Everyone—you and me, and more so the young people.
I am therefore glad that you have made the effort to be here tonight. I am stressing at every opportunity that the power to change is with us--the people. It is time that we—the people--realise and use that power to choose a Government that serves the people—one that puts people first.
I am happy to say that we have completed our Meet the People Program with our visits to the Western, Northern, and Central divisions. Let me mention a few issues that come up every time.
One is their call for a free and fair elections. This is the single most important pillar of democracy. I want to believe that everyone, including the Government of the day, wants a government that is elected honestly. Yet sadly, we are not generating enough support towards reducing the risks of rigging the election. The changes to reduce these risks are extremely easy to implement like the numbering of ballot papers and counting to be done at the polling stations. The auditing of the election IT system is a no-brainer. But why are decision makers not wanting to make these easy changes? Don’t they want to protect democracy? Don’t they want to eliminate our fears? For the sake of democracy, I urge the people to demand that these simple changes be made.
The people are also concerned about the risk of another political crisis. They have told us very clearly that they cannot bear the cost any longer. The price that they and their families had paid and continue to pay for these crises is very large. We reminded the people that this Government has assured us and the international community that there will be no more coups. The people are asking that this promise be reiterated to ally their concerns.
People have also acknowledged that this Government has done many good developments in their areas. At the same time, the people have told us of challenges that remain. Sadly, many, if not all the problems that we heard are not new but very little has been done. The resource owners remain cash poor. Basic needs of water and power are not met. My message to the people that we met was--given our strength in economic and financial management locally and internationally, Unity Fiji will do a much better job in developing the country and very importantly do so on a sustainable basis.
Unity Fiji is multiracial and inclusive. I stress what I have said already, we must get our politics right. We believe that the future of politics in Fiji is multiracialism. We share the same country. We are in the same boat. What happens to one ethnic group must be of concern to others. I also stress that being multiracial does not mean that we will ignore ethnic issues. On the contrary!! Please read my lips—We will address all ethnic issues as passionately as any communal based Party. More importantly, we believe that with the filter of national unity, we will have a greater chance of finding solutions that last.
People also told me that if I enter politics, I will spend a lot of money and I am finding that out very quickly. People that know me will tell you that I have a strong sense of doing the right things right. If we are going to change anything, we must win the next elections. We cannot change a thing from the opposition bench. To win, we need your financial support. Please pledge generously. This is a defining time for every person in Fiji. Please don’t sit on the fence—you might fall on the wrong side! Please sign the forms that have been distributed or visit our website at www.unityfiji.com where you can make donations directly to our account or through the Go-Fund-Me link. Every donation, whatever the amount, counts.
For those that are fearing that Unity Fiji will split the votes, I can confirm to you now that we will. As a new party, how else can we get votes? The fundamental question that I have is this: Should a political party have the right to our votes simply because it was registered first? I think that any Party should earn the votes that it gets. Unity Fiji will do likewise. We will fight for those votes.
To me, the issue is not splitting but of winning. Our aim is to increase the aggregate votes of the opposition parties so we can win. We are confident of achieving that aim because Unity Fiji will fight with a credible team. We will deliver what we say we will deliver. We will deliver because we have a team that have accomplished something in our lives. We have the leadership and the vision.
I conclude by repeating what I said at the launch of the Party in Nadi. We will offer the people what they have told us that they were looking for—a credible alternative government.
Vinaka Vakalevu