People who had not been affected by Tropical Cyclone Josie and Keni but had applied and received assistance under the CARE for Fiji programmes have been granted an amnesty period until next Sunday, so these people can return their electronic cards, or any other form of assistance received.
In a statement, the government says the amnesty period applies for all ineligible recipients under Farms‑CARE, Homes‑CARE, eTransport‑CARE, Leaseholders‑CARE and Sugarcane‑CARE and during this amnesty period, the electronic cards that have already been spent by an ineligible recipient must also be repaid in full.
The statement says that audit teams from the Ministry of Economy are undertaking random verifications and spot checks for households and individuals, and several cases of suspected abuse have already been referred to the Fiji Police Force for investigation.
Electronic cards granted through Farms‑CARE can be returned to any agriculture office in the country while all other CARE for Fiji electronic cards, or other forms of assistance can be returned or refunded at any social welfare office in the country.
The government is urging any ineligible CARE for Fiji recipients to take advantage of this amnesty period, as otherwise the consequences for abusing any CARE for Fiji programmes can be very serious.
Under the False Information Act 2016, any false information given to Government for the purposes of receiving a benefit is an offence punishable by law, and may result in a requirement to repay the benefit, a fine of up to $20,000 or an imprisonment term of up to 10 years.
