Citizenship and money
Bizarre statement
WHAT a bizarre statement by the Minister for Agriculture Dr Mahendra Reddy that Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama had to be born so Fijians of Indian descent could be granted equal citizenship. (FT 06/06)
I recalled what former FijiFirst Cabinet Minister Ashneel Sudhakar said in Ba during the 2018 election campaign that Voreqe Bainimarama is Fiji’s “messiah” and he is the only person who can save every person in Fiji.
After the 2018 election, Mr Sudhakar became the Minister for Lands, however, the messiah could not save him when he was given his termination letter.
Nevertheless, Dr Reddy further said and I quote, “The Prime Minister also told me to tell you that the right to equal citizenry and the right to be called Fijian was only given in 2013”.
This is an outright lie for it is public knowledge that Fijians of Indian descent were granted equal citizenry way before 2013.
Mr Reddy carries the accreditation of being a Dr, however, I believe such statement belittles his accreditation and points to his own subservient mentality as Mr Chaudhry said. KOSITATINO TIKOMAIBOLATAGANE Vuninokonoko Rd, Navua
Equal citizenship
WHILE speaking at a religious gathering on Saturday, Dr Mahendra Reddy told the devotees that the Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama had to be born so Fijians of Indian descent could be granted equal citizenship (FT 6/6).
Could I ask where was the Prime Minister when the first Indo-Fijian prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry and his Cabinet ministers were held hostage in Parliament for 56 days?
And where did the guns come from that were used in carrying out the 2000 coup?
If the 2013 Constitution guarantees the right to equal citizenry, then can the ban imposed on Padma Lal be lifted so her family could perform the last rites for her late husband in his country of birth?
SELWA NANDAN
Lautoka
Yellow money
I HONESTLY cannot believe how stupid some people are. Here’s why:
I go away for a few months. I became used to not carrying around any cash as the “tap and pay” is the new non-cash system employed now in Australia.
Before I left, I was using M-PAiSA everywhere and for most payments, eliminating the need for cash on most occasions.
No one in Australia with whom I spoke had heard of M-PAiSA and in the same way, the “tap and pay” system is not widely used here in Fiji.
Here’s the rub: On my return and for several days I am strutting around with what I thought was a $100 note in my purse and feeling like a rich person (it gets you that way when you haven’t handled cash for a while) until I went to use it to pay for something less than $50. I pulled out my yellow note and handed it to the cashier. She looked at me as if to say “You expect me to take that?”
I had to ask her what the problem was. She explained that it was the new $7 Fijiana note.
With all due respect, who decided to have the $100 note the same colour as the new $7 note?
Just another area where customers have to be on their guard. Why didn’t consumer watchdogs pick-up on this? JULIE SUTHERLAND
Tamavua, Suva