Rubbing Salt Into The Wound

Ni Sa Bula,

The events unfolding over the last few days have been very interesting.

Firstly, we have the rejection of the visa application made by one Voreqe Bainimarama to enter Italy. Now I wasn't sure whether this meant that ole Frankie is now in the outhouse as far as the Europeans are concerned....then came the news last night that the Sugar subsidies that Chaudry and Co were promising to the cane belt people in the West and the North would not be given until next year, and even that conditional to evidence that real and measurable progress had been made towards returning Fiji to democracy. For good measure, they have also made the prevention of any intimidating utterances by the security forces another condition. See...even the international community see the crap this junta has been spewing. Mahendra, being as idiotic as only he can be, came on the 6pm news to say that now that the PER has been lifted, the money should be coming through soon. Yeah right!!!! and pigs fly!!! How moronic is that??? and this is the type of person who now controls the Government coffers!!! The only consolation I have is that he is not there by the will of the people. How do you like them apples????

Now our neighbours Australia, have, revised their security assessment of our country, and have warned it's citizens intent on visiting our shores of the possibility of "sporadic outbreaks of violence" in and around Suva. The Military, taking their cue from Mr (No) Money Man Mahen, are now clamouring (led by a certain Officer whose shoe size can be seen by the width and depth of his mouth) that the Australian reaction is due to their defeat in the RWC 2007 quater finals. What a bunch of idiots!!!! It's not due to that...it's due to the fact that they perceive Fiji to be unstable and are warning their citizens accordingly!!! That is the duty of any responsible government....oh my mistake...you are neither responsible or a government!!!

Then we have this gem from the newly (sic) appointed Commissioner of Police who in a fit of lunacy, wrote to the Attorney General demanding the removal of Justice Winters and Jitoko from the trial of one Francis Kean....for those of you who haven't been following the plot, this Francis Kean is the brother-in-law of the gentleman whose Italian Visa Application was rejected. His excuse? The fact that the two gentlemen, as non-supporters of the coup, would be biased against Kean. How absurd is that? These are judges with years of experience, professionals who do their job well, and know that whatever decisions they make must stand up to the scrutiny they will inevitably invite. The punch line in all this is that the legal counsel for the accused, presented said letter to the court ....wait for it.....AS EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THEIR SUBMISSION THAT THE JUDGES REMOVE THEMSELVES!!!! ha ha ha ha ha

As if that wasn't enough....Mr. Chaudry again appears on the news telling all and sundry that there will be a tax amnesty for all defaulting taxpayers for a month. Surely, you're not thinking of taking advantage of that month now are you, Mahen?

let me gather my thoughts.....

So we have a "government" whose leader is persona non grata in quite a few countries (Italy, USA, New Zealand, Australia immediately spring to mind), a Money Man who has no money, a Commissioner of Police who is trying to pervert justice, an Army ,who, instead of defending the country is attacking it...sounds like a very bad joke doesn't it?

The sad thing is it's not. It's happening...and it's happening right here in Fiji!!! Here in the island paradise we call home, in the country we all live in and love and hope will again one day be the sort of place we would be proud to bequeath upon our children. We cannot continue like this, we need to stand up and do something.

Will you do something about it?

God Bless Fiji,
FijianBlack AKA Mawdsomething

How The Truth Can Never Be Hidden

Ni Sa Bula,

The events unfolding over the last few days are another confirmation of the inescapible fact of life - THE TRUTH CAN NEVER BE HIDDEN.

Our boys played out of their skins over the weekend, and together with the Pumas of Argentina, are the big movers in the hierachy of rugby. Their performance brought home a truth that was long buried under layers of doubt, and lack of self belief, the fact that if we put our mind to it, we can be world beaters at this game. Now with the belief within the team and the country, no wonder the 1/4s this weekend is surely one of the most anticipated games Fiji has to play in for a long time.

On the flip side of things, the rejection of Bainimarama's visa by the Italian Govenment surely underlines the fact that he is considered an "undesirable" by that country. As a key member of the EU, and also a party to the Schengen Agreement, this means that other signatories to this agreement would also stop Frankie at their borders. Guess that means watching the World Cup live is a non-option as well, since France is a founding signatory to this.

Another truth that was being buried was the fact that the Constitition of this "little pile of mud" was still in force. That said, it made the coup, the removal of Qarase's government, any changes made by decree to the laws of our nation effectively illegal.....all together now "I TOLD YOU SO!!!" This has come out in the Qarase lawsuit and will be a test case to the legal integrity of this regime. Kinda reduces the junta to the level of petty criminals and thieves. Guess the "great legal minds" in their fold must be practically frothing at the mouth over this development....put a report out on that one Shaista!!!!

Yet another truth that has yet to see the light of day are the identities of the murderers of Verebasaga and Rabaka. While we may never know, there is One who knows, One who sees, One who judges and in the end it will all be revealed.

Now the thing about the truth is that you cannot stop it. You cannot hide it. You cannot defeat it. As Winston Churchill once said “The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is.”

Rest assured in the truth that God does not pay at the end of every day.......
BUT IN THE END, HE PAYS!!!!

God Bless Fiji
Mawdsomething AKA Fijianblack

The Importance of Having the Correct Mindset

Ni Sa Bula,

By now, most of you must be wondering where I've been. Lets just say (for the sake of those snoops from Delainabua who come in here from time to time) that I am somewhere that makes getting online kinda difficult.

However, that has not deterred me from watching Fiji's games on TV!!!! and what a match they played this morning!!! That was one heck of a game, and even better...one HECK OF A RESULT. Of course, if you were a Welshman, you'd disagree with me. But hey...that victory put me is such a good mood that I'm inclinded to let it slide...

It brought home a truth though. The importance of having the correct mindset.

We see it all the time with our champion 7s teams that rule the worldwide scene. Teams actually respect them, they try to avoid them when they can, and when they can't...well we all know and love that situation!!!! I saw it this morning, when a group of valiant young men, halfway across the world, far from home, decided to believe in themselves and actually shook the world.

We saw it when Tonga took the fight to the Springboks. We saw it when Samoa played England. It's the stuff that inspires, the souls of legends. It's what makes people believe, achieve and strive to be better than they are.

And Fiji can be like that. We are better than this piddling, insignificant regime makes us out to be. We don't deserve the crap this junta brings down on us, just like our boys didn't deserve this sort of crap that the Welsh media served them. Guess that's one editor that has his foot in his mouth right about now.

That is what we need to do. We need to have the correct mindset, we need to play with our hearts, with our pride. We need to live in such a way that this regime will end up eating their "jungle boots". We owe this to our children, and their children, and their children's children. Above all, we need to do this together. Individually it cannot be done. Collectively, we cannot be stopped. We need to ,in the words of a cetain Tongan forward, "pring out A-Game to da Springpoks!!!"

Nicky Little summed it up when he succicently said "It just depends whether we are sleeping under the coconut tree or rowing the boat." The question is, are you willing to row this boat? If so...break out your oars and pull.

Congratulations to the boys..and all the best in the 1/4s. I think you will go all the way and take the cup, and this is why. It's a prophecy that's been around for a while now.

God Bless Fiji,
Mawdsomething AKA FijianBlack

Deserving the Best

Ni Sa Bula,

After watching this evening's Close up , where the regime's Education (sic) Minister was pitted against the President of the Fijian Teachers Association, one of the striking unions, the idea of this post was born.

The Interim Minister, kept on rattling on about his "contingency plan" except when he detoured to rant about how he was an ex-officer (yeah..like that is something to be boast about) and how he always did thing to ensure success. Mr. Koroi ( the FTA President) was, however, calm, collected and evidently more intelligent, a fact borne out by the intellectual answers that he had for questions put to him by the show's host, and the regimes "head teacher".

The interesting point of all this (at least for me) was when Mr. Koroi was "accused" by the Interim Minister of "sabotaging the nation's education system". Now, the answer Mr. Koroi gave was the reason this post is here.

Mr. Koroi stated that his actions are not unequivocal, that he is carrying out the mandate of his members, a mandate that (if memory serves correctly) 79% of his members gave him by secret ballot. This makes him answerable to his members, who have the luxury (yes..in Fiji it is now a luxury) of voting him out if they don't agree with his modus operandi.

Now you have a twit, who along with the other twits in power now, are, to my immense chagrin, running the show. WHO ARE THEY RESPONSIBLE TO? WHO ARE THEY ANSWERABLE TO? If one was to believe Taniela Tabu, and it doesn't require a stretch of the imagination to do so, this government is answerable to the shadowy "Military Council" that is purportedly running this country.

Now, folks.....is this the best Fiji has to offer? Is this the best we can get, to manage the affairs of this nation? Are these people the smartest, the ablest, the wisest we have?

Not by a long shot.

How does being an officer qualify one to become a diplomat? A Commissioner of Police? A Prime Minister? Why should we suffer this outrage....of having substandard personnel running the affairs of this nation?

The difference between Mr. Koroi and Mr. Sukanaivalu brought home a real truth to me...that despite all it's faults, under a democratic system, the cream really does rise to the top. Granted people sometimes get it wrong, but not always, and seldom more than one. The current regime is an glaring example of this. We see their ineptitude in dealing with the strikes, with the sliding economy, with the dwindling tourist numbers, with the flailing sugar industry...the list just goes on and on.....

The real insult in this is that someone, somewhere, had the gall to think that they know what is best for us. The people best suited to choose who our leaders are, are we, the voters of this nation. We know what's best for us...and we know what we deserve. We do not need failed politicians, wannabee ministers, and in-it-for-the-money con artists telling us what we need.

Somebody once said " You can fool all the people some of the time, and you can fool some people all of the time, but you can't fool all the people all of the time!"

The time for being fools is over. This time, we need a better government. We deserve a better government. We deserve a government where our choices is reflected in the composition of our MPs. We deserve a chance to really shine. We can. And we will.........it's just a matter of when.

The FTA leadership is doing what it is supposed to do. It is standing up, and fighting for it's members, and protecting their interetst.

This government was not elected by any of us. Whose interests are they protecting?

God Bless Fiji,
Mawdsomething AKA Fijianblack

How Low Can You Go?

Ni Sa Bula,

No..I'm not talking about that congo line..although I wish I was. Seriously!!!

I'm talking about the way this nation we all loave and live in is sinking into the depths of economic, civil and moral depravity. We are now seeing things that were unimaginable, foreign to us just a few short months ago. What a short period of time!!!!

Firstly, we have to put up with crap like this stinker from Jo Koroi, who has put the interests of her party before the welfare of her granddaughter. Shame on you! This is her take on the economy: "...exports were increasing and imports decreasing. Bank interest rates were falling and the sugar industry was on the rebound." How do you like them apples? Especially when the Interim PM is saying that the deteriorating economy is the reason why his government (yes his!!! because it is definitely nobody else's !!!) is the reason why they cannot meet the demands of the nurses. Talk about contradiction!!! CONTRADICTION!!!! The height of hypocrasy, I say.

Then there's the suspension of people like Inoke Devo and Misieli Naivalu. In case any of you forgot, Misieli Naivalu was the same person who put the funeral of his wife on hold to finish conducting the 2006 elections in the North. That is sacrifice, country before self. How someone of that calibre can be accused of being corrupt is beyond me. Imagine the sacrifice this man made, on behalf of the nation? I've said it once, and I'll say it again...the FLP is full of people who are all soured up because they couldn't win the last 2 elections fair and square.

Mr. Langman says ''Even if Naivalu and Devo are not directly involved in the allegations, they are the people at the top and ultimately the hammer will fall on them,'' Thus, by the same logic, wouldn't that make Bainimarama guilty of the deaths of Verebasaga, Rabaka and Malasebe? After all isn't he at the top? Shouldn't the hammer fall on him? After all, while he was not "directly involved" wasn't he at the top when these killings occured? hmmm.....this stinks more and more.

So the nurses are on strike....and it's been declared legal. So why the paycut? Doesn't the law state that if a strike is declared legal, then shouldn't the strikers get their pay? Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place eh??? Go to Calanchini, he just might rule in favour of the strikers...don't go and the strike continues. I'm sooooooglad that decision is not mine to make.

This IG has set the bar impossibly low for the country, and is now trying to force the nation to "congo" under it. The nurses are saying it can't be done. The bloggers are saying it can't be done. The lawyers (well the ones worth their salt anyway) are saying it cannot be done. Anyone with any sense can tell that it can't be done.

The IG is asking "How low can you go?"

How low can you really go?

God Bless Fiji,
Mawdsomething aka Fijiblack

The Things We do for Love....

Ni Sa Bula...

Corny..I know..I know!!!

But hey..think about this for a moment.

Bainimarama,Chaudary, Shaista, Bernie, the whole lot of them, what do they love? Apart from themselves of course!!! They love power!!!They love the fact that now they can tell people to do what they want, when they want and how they want? You want to argue? Driti the enforcer will see that their will becomes your way.

Serevi loves this nation. He has given more than half his life to the services of our country, and has brought glory, fame and honour to our shores in a way that none of us could emulate...and he does this for free.

Some people love their grog. You know the type..the ones that are go wandering off at 2am, looking for another house that is still drinking grog to go and vakatinitini. The kind whose skin is a dead giveaway. The kind whose congregating call is the sound of that "obo", the clanging of the tabili.

Then there's people like me. People who blog. People who are willing to debate this farce that we are now stuck in, and are willing to do so in public. People who speak out. This includes those who write in the Letters to the Editor, those who express their sentiments on air. People like Graham Leung, Shameema Ali. People who, in their own way love this country and are willing to do something to protect her. People who can say what is true and right and must be said, even if there is a risk to one's personal safety.

Now this one is the humdinger...the big kahuna..the million-dollar question.

What do you love?

Do you love Fiji enough to stand up with the rest of us to stand up with us and say "Enough!!!"

Are you willing to speak up and tell this regime that we will tolerate this no longer, that this has gone on long enough, and that we must right the wrongs that are now tearing our nation apart?

Can you?

Will you?

Why don't you?

What do you love? The potential that Fiji has? Or the present that you endure? It's a choice that we must make as individuals, but live out collectively.

Remember...alone you are a drop...but together we are the ocean.

God Bless Fiji,
Mawdsomething

Once Again Into the Breech....

Dear friends....ni sa bula.

I apologise for being away from this forum for so long. I am no longer in Fiji, and I'm glad that my anonymity worked, or I might be another person stopped at our international airport like Graham , Laisa or Shamima. However, my family still resides there, I still carry the sky blue passport, and I am still proud to be a Fijian.

Now that I am not in Fiji anymore, one can see things more clearly. It's definitely a case of stepping back to look at the big picture...and it is not a pretty one. From outside, Fiji is now a definite member of the Melanesian "Arc of Instability" , the grouping of Melanesian nations that are in various stages of unrest. Mind you, our Polynesian next-door neighbour seems to have caught this virus..with a further extension to their current State of Emergency, the 8th since last year's crisis in Nuku'alofa.

But back to our backyard.

One could go on lamenting the problems that now besiege us. We could spend years around the tanoa talking about this problem, and how it is affecting our country. That is what we have been doing and what we are doing.

The reason we, the people of this nation are suffering is because we, the people allow it. Maybe we hate confrontation. Maybe, we like what this government is doing. Maybe, we fear the repurcussions if we stand up. Maybe, we want to do something, but we don't know how to do it.

We need solutions to our problem. We all know that there is a problem, and we need to solve it, and fast. If we don't, we will be stuck in this conumdrum for a lot longer than we need to be. So put your thinking hats on..and put in your ideas in the comments section. As we keep on harping about democracy, we might as well be democraticatic about the selection of the next course of action. So that means, people, that the most popular idea for resisting this regime wins.

So pound those keys....and let's make them remember.

God Bless Fiji
Mawdsomething AKA Fijianblack