Stop dreaming

Timoci Gaunavinaka, Nausori

In 2014 the citizens of Fiji elected a Government to govern our nation.

The election result was so overwhelming. Our current Prime Minister alone won more votes than all the Opposition (SODELPA + NFP) “parliamentarians” votes combined.

The next set of voting is just around the corner.

But until then, they are still the legitimate Government chosen by the people for the people.

Some prominent politicians and Union leaders marched in protest against Government's implementation of civil servants' contracts and demanded a $4 minimum wage last Saturday. Some of them stood in that 2014 election but failed to win a single seat in Parliament. They were humiliated and rejected by an overwhelming majority of the people and it seems they are still sore about it today.

The civil service is not our father's company where we can take a job and stay there until retirement at 55 whether we perform or slept on the job.

To do that will be cheating the people. Civil servants exist to serve the people.

To get the best people in terms of qualification, experience and performance to serve our nation best, contract system must be implemented to ensure a more focused and competitive recruitment and performance. It is as simple as 1 + 1 = 2.

A single mother who earns an average salary of $400 a fortnight cannot afford to pay her housegirl the minimum wage of $320 a fortnight (@ $4 an hour x 80 hours = $320) and left with only $80 to pay her rent, electricity, water, transport to and from work, food, furniture, clothes, phone bills, kitchenware. This will force her to quit working thus increasing our number of unemployment. It applies to various sectors of our workforce. The number of people who marched last Saturday represented less than a quarter per cent of the workers in Fiji.

The International Labour Organisation is already working very closely with Government on our various labour issues and is fully aware of all the logics and nonsense behind all these issues.

Perhaps the Prime Minister and AttorneyGeneral should organise a march in Suva for all the people who want to show their support on various Government Policies and also show this ‘little, tiny and insignificant' number where they truly stand.

The personal agendas of a few must never be allowed to overshadow the wishes of an overwhelming majority who wish to take this nation to progress and prosperity.

It is time we drag them back to Earth and its realities from their self-centred dreams. Timoci Gaunavinaka will receive a Philips Hand Blender from Courts.