Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka is willing to cancel his official engagement to meet with Fijians residing in Rarotonga after concerns were raised about the $100 entry fee for a private meet and greet session with him.

Cook Islands Friends of Fiji Inc will be hosting the Fijian PM and his delegation on Tuesday from 4pm to 9pm and those interested to attend were required to register and pay $100 by Friday last week.

The cost covered dinner and gifts which have been organised for an adult only event (16 years above).

Cook Islands News understands there is no other official engagement being arranged for Fijians residing in Rarotonga to meet their leader who came into power after the 2022 general election in December.

In a social media post, a concerned Fijian said the Forum Meeting was “a rare opportunity” to engage with Rabuka “to express my support for his vision, and to show my dedication to Fiji’s continued progress”.

“My anticipation, however, quickly turned to disillusionment when I learned, through my confederacy, that my chances to see the Prime Minister had become remarkably bleak. The reason behind this sudden loss of hope was a disheartening decision made by the organising committee: they had imposed a $100 fee for anyone who wished to have an audience with the Prime Minister,” the person said.

“The decision to charge a fee to meet a democratically elected leader, especially when the opportunity had a personal significance to me, was hard to digest. What stung even more was the fact that, despite being a massive contributor to Fiji's government tax revenue as a former government worker and currently residing abroad, diligently sending home taxed remittances to support the nation’s economy and my family, I was now expected to pay $100 for a chance to meet the person I had voted for.”’

Cook Islands News on Saturday reached out to Friends of Fiji Inc’s Tangaroa Vakalalabure who questioned the publication’s intention before banning the newspaper from covering Tuesday’s event.

“Is this the news piece you are working on? This question is to be put to the Cook Islands Fijian Community Executives (CIFA) but first check if these disappointed Fijians are registered members of CIFA. Ask this question to Ratu Inoke Kubuabola who is here, if you can’t get any CIFA executives or ask the Fijian PM himself. Are you trying to sell papers by smearing the Fijian PM?” Vakalalabure said.

PM Rabuka, who was scheduled to arrive in Rarotonga last night, told Cook Islands News: “I asked that they consult with Foreign Affairs Fiji to find a suitable time to meet. I can arrange for a time – even if I cancel some official engagement”

Ratu Inoke Kubuabola

Fiji’s High Commissioner to New Zealand and Cook Islands (non-resident), Ratu Inoke Kubuabola, who was welcomed by the Cook Islands Fijian Association (CIFA) on Saturday, told Cook Islands News he was not notified about a fee being charged to meet PM Rabuka.

“To see the Prime Minister, you don’t charge to see the Prime Minister, I am sure he would be concerned,” Ratu Inoke said.

“Because I know the Prime Minister will be very disappointed if he does not bring everybody together.”

Ratu Inoke, who called on the Fijians in Cook Islands to work together and be united, said he was expecting everyone – the members of Friends of Fiji and Cook Islands Fijian Association – to be at his welcoming function on Saturday night. The Friends of Fiji members were invited to Saturday’s event, a CIFA executive said.

“We are all from Fiji, whether iTaukei or Indo-Fijian, Rotuman, we are from Fiji.

“Unfortunately, this seems to be the case in many other places like in Auckland but they have put their differences aside in June when Prime Minister came, they came together to welcome our prime minister.”

The Cook Islands Fijian Association on Tuesday last week presented a matanigasau – a Fijian protocol – to the Friends of Fiji Inc, asking for forgiveness and unity.

In a post on their Facebook page, Association president Wayne Insimo said: “That given the very short amount of time we have been given to organise ourselves for this visit including very little time to prepare the full protocols and other important matters to accord a proper welcome for PM Rabuka, as well as an overlap of our Tuesday programme with Friends of Fiji programme on the same day and time, our best approach is to combine our efforts.”