Culture Shock of Democracy in Fiji.

Chiefs of Cakaudrove who wish to advise the Army Commander on politics should think about the dual standards that they apply in Fiji's democracy. unfortunately the Chiefs are forgetting that they are not a democratically elected group and their ramblings of discontent is rooted in their out-flanked gate-keeping role for information. Others have optioned to shut out the Truth Campaign soldiers in their villages and threatened any fellow villager that entertained soldiers in their homes, with expulsion. If that isn't restriction of free association then Military might as well create Pirate Political radio stations to further their reach.

S.D.L announces the presentation ceremony of the manifesto and the candidates for the 2006 elections. Even though some rumor mongering among that Dr Tupeni Baba was invited to join the S.D.L line up.

If the proposal of Fijian Court system, as raised by some wishful thinking Senators is a step backward and is duplictory. Woe betides the common villager who crosses the path, of the village judge/chief/excutioner.

That is the crux of the chained socio-cultural mentality that is pervasive in all sectors of Provincial Councils.

The issue of election campaign funding laws is gaining popularity, even among nationalists in Fiji is a welcomed call.

Fiji Supervisor of Elections is receiving complaints from all quarters on the flawed registration process in Fiji Times Letters to the Editor.

To err is human

SUPERVISOR of Elections Semesa Karavaki says enumerators may have made mistakes when they filled voter-registration forms because they were only humans.

He did not indicate how many human errors a enumerator is allowed to make before he is declared incompetent or imbecile.

On the day of the general election, albeit too late, the number of errors made by enumerators on registration forms will determine whether the errors were really human or inhuman.

According to the law, all registered voters who do not vote in the general election will be charged and fined.

Because of human error in the Elections Office some registered voters who are prevented from voting because of the erroneous entry on voter rolls, may be charged and fined later for not going to vote. To err is human.

The least the Elections Office could do for the disenfranchised citizens of Fiji is issue to each voter on the day of election at the polling station, an official piece of paper or official proof that he/she went to vote but was not allowed to vote.

The Elections Office owes this to the voter for its own mistake.

If a small, poor person can be charged and fined for not being able to go and vote, the Elections Office with it's multi-million dollar budget and competent staff can surely give a small piece of official paper, in return for the mistake its employees made to the people whose right to vote was taken away from them.

Does the Elections Office have any money for this? Is there enough time to do it now? Last of all, does the Supervisor of Elections see any need for doing this? Your guess is as good as mine.

Kanti Patel
Suva

Electoral Act

According to Supervisor of Elections Semesa Karavaki, the Electoral Act is impractical and he will ignore it with Mahendra Chaudhry's complaint with regard to the timeline (FT 13/3).

In the next breath, the Electoral Act, according to him, empowers him to complain to the police about the military commander (FT 13/3).

So the Electoral Act is good when it suits him and bad when it doesn't. Must feel great to have power to freely juggle the Act.

Kanti Patel
Suva

Voter registration

Last year some officers came to our house to register our names.

Although I was put on the right constituency,I discovered later on when I went to check my name in the Provisional Roll that my house number was wrongly written.The error was rectified.

On the same day as my name was registered, my house lady's name was also registered.

Despite telling the witnessing officer the constituency she belonged to, she was put in the wrong constituency. On the day I checked in the Provisional Rolls for the appearance of my name, she also checked hers.

It was discovered her name did not appear at all.

She was registered again. However I feel there is no guarantee that despite the corrections and re-registration done, that our names will appear in the main roll or if it does appear, it will be free of errors.

This is just a couple of cases for mention but I feel that there could be hundreds, perhaps thousands whose names have been put in wrong constituencies or have other mistakes.

For these reasons I suggest that the General Elections be postponed until everybody's names are correctly registered.

The Supervisor of Elections should erect sheds in places where people frequent for the registration of voters and for the checking of their names in the provisional rolls so people don't have to fork out taxi fares or extra bus fares to reach DO's offices which is not convenient for them to go to.

Hassan Ali
Lautoka

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