Does it matter where MPs come from in assigning ministerial posts in new Govt?

Where people come from does not matter in allocating ministerial portfolios in the new coalition Government. But it does to some who were locked in heated exchanges on social media since the first Parliament sitting on Saturday.

The basis for selection should be on merit, not based on where we are from, our ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation. When the Tui Cakau, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu, was elected Speaker and Sitiveni Rabuka as Prime Minister it triggered a debate on social media. It was raised that three of the country’s top key positions, the Prime Minister, Speaker of Parliament and the President, were held by people from Vanua Levu. A number of ministerial posts went the same way too.

Dr Ratu Antonio Lalabalavu, a medical practitioner and son of Ratu Naiqama, is Minister for Health. He is best suited for the job because of his medical background, in the same way as Dr Ifereimi Waqainabete was appointed to the position in the former FijiFirst Government.

It is sad that rival groups engaged in the debate are iTaukei. Questions discussed included why those from Viti Levu were overlooked. There seemed to be a belief in some quarters that job or ministerial appointments should not be dominated by one geographical area, and they should be fairly distributed.

The principle behind this argument was used against the previous Government of FijiFirst in the appointments of heads of statutory organisations, which were dominated by Indo-Fijians who are Muslims. The elements of race and religion were used to show that the system was weighted to favour one group. Some of the critics of the previous government are in the current coalition Government.

When we fail to apply merit in making appointments to important positions, we are open to all kinds of criticisms based on race, religion, sexual orientation and where we come from. We hope that the new Government will continue to use meritocracy in all its dealings.

At the end of the day, it’s the post-holders’ performance and productivity that matter the most, not where they come from, their race, religion and gender.