Abraham calls for transparency in charitable activities

The Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission (FCCC) has called for transparency when firms and individuals raise funds from the public for charity.

The commission is calling on businesses and individuals who raise funds to establish a system of accountability and transparency and ensure funds reach the intended recipients. This comes in the wake of recent investigations by the commission that brought to light the inadequacies of the current governance systems in charity organisations. Commission chief executive officer Joel Abraham said: “The most well-known example of this is the Lagilagi Housing Project investigation. The project was launched with the intent to offer people living in the Lagilagi Squatter settlement better conditions with an affordable payment plan.

“However, during the investigation, it came to light that deposits had been collected from other people who were not eligible for the scheme, poor overall governance of the scheme and that a good number of the original residents that were relocated to make way for the Lagilagi Housing Project were not provided with housing as promised. This has resulted in the Government taking operational control to remedy the situation.”

FCCC has also had to intervene in a similar case where a prominent church had solicited funds from members to be sent overseas with promises of millions in return.

This looks like the church was falling for a scam, but people have a tendency to not question figures of authority, especially in religious institutions.