AG denounces accusations of political interference

Attorney General, Siromi Turaga has denounced the accusation of political interference when it comes to speculation about the appointment of specific tribunals, questions on why aren’t there simultaneous appointments, why the expenditure, why is the process slow and why can’t specific offices be filled.

While speaking in parliament today, Turaga says there is a process and there is a distinction between the Constitutional Offices Commission and the Judicial Services Commission.

He says the Constitutional Offices Commission operates on a complaint-initiated mechanism (for specific offices under the Constitution) for example, it receives complaints from members of the public, and on assessment, either report to the police or take note to initiate proceedings on allegations of misconduct, set up tribunals and proceed to hearings.

Turaga says the Judicial Services Commission on the other hand is mandated to investigate complaints for other specific offices, for instance for those appointed to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

He says this is why they get the right people to do the job and not rush matters of sensitivity; no overnight analysis and verdicts.

Turaga says in 2023 alone, the appointment of new judicial officers saw an increase in the number of local and qualified men and women appointed to the bench.

He says with the proper remuneration deserving of individuals who have spent much of their career contributing to Fiji’s legal system and jurisprudence, the judicial system is now well equipped to handle local cases by our people well qualified to do so and who are able to understand local context when it is required. He says this is also to ease the load of the numerous cases that are before our courts today, which had to be audited by the Acting Chief Justice.

Turaga says in 2021, there were 8 new appointments, in 2022, 7 were appointed to the bench, in 2023 to date - a record total of 22 judicial officers have been appointed; 11 judges (3 women) and 11 magistrates (8 women).