Six new parties register for Fiji’s next election

The Fiji Times reports that this includes the proposed HOPE party, created by the youth activist Peter Waqavonovono and former opposition leader Mick Beddoes, who both defected from the main opposition Sodelpa party.

Under the Political Parties Decree, which was introduced ahead of the 2014 election – the first since Frank Bainimarama’s 2006 coup – the registration process is a long and arduous one.

An application needs to be accompanied by a schedule setting out the details of at least 5000 members of the proposed party from across Fiji’s four divisions.

They must then be vetted by the Elections Office and the Registrar of Political Parties.

Until then, a group is not allowed to operate as, or hold itself to be, a political party until the application has been approved.

Meanwhile, Sodelpa says discussions are still underway about forming a united opposition, despite other parties seemingly showing little interest.

Last month, Sitiveni Rabuka invited other opposition parties to formally join Sodelpa to try and unseat the dominant FijiFirst government in the 2018 elections.

But the other opposition party in parliament, the National Federation Party, has said it plans to contest the election in its own right, and no other party has yet to come out in support of the proposal.

However, Rabuka says he remains optimistic.

“I’m continuing talks with the parties – including the National Federation Party – so I’m not worried about what the press is saying.”

The leader of Fiji’s main opposition party says the country’s new single-constituency electoral system will make the 2018 election campaign very expensive.

Ahead of the 2014 election – the country’s first since the 2006 coup – electorates were abolished in favour of one single national constituency with 50 MPs.

Rabuka, said this meant that candidates would be travelling across the country, instead of focussing on a specific area.

He said that’s why the party was looking to raise the Fiji equivalent of US$813,000 for the election.

“All the candidates will be expected to visit the whole of the Fiji group to solicit support from the people. It’s not like we used to have before where we had geographic areas.

“Now we have one national constituency where 50 candidates from each party can stand and they have to criss-cross the whole nation campaigning for themselves and their party.”

Sitiveni Rabuka concedes the $813,000 figure is ambitious, but he is confident the party can meet it.

- RNZI