Fiji Labour Party Leader and National Farmer Union General Secretary, Mahendra Chaudhry is a shameless politician who has an unequalled track record for lying and stooping to gutter level in his quest for political support.
National Federation Party President, Parmod Chand highlighted this as Chaudhry claims that leading up to the 2022 general elections, the National Federation Party leader, Professor Biman Prasad promised to raise the sugarcane price to $110 per tonne, if they won the elections.
Chaudhry says this promise has not been kept.
Chaudhry’s statement criticises the announcement of the 3rd cane payment of $12.23 per tonne and accuses Professor Prasad and the People’s Alliance Party of reneging on its pre-election promise of $110 per tonne.
Chand has demanded Chaudhry to provide irrefutable evidence that the NFP Leader promised a cane payment of $110 per tonne to cane growers during the 2022 general elections campaign.
Chand says it is clear that Chaudhry is hell-bent on trying to undermine the NFP Leader in a bid to rescue his political fortunes.
He says Chaudhry is doomed, however, growers will not be fooled by his lies.
The President says every NFP Leader has advanced the interests of growers and Professor Prasad has done the same and his track record of protecting the interests of growers in the face of adversity from 2014 to 2022 when the Fiji First was in government speaks for itself.
He says growers trust them while Chaudhry has used growers as political pawns.
Chand says in the last two seasons, the growers have been paid well above the guaranteed price of $85 per tonne implemented by the former government, which too reneged on that price and short-changed growers by almost $14m.
He is asking where was Chaudhry in 2023 when growers received over $91 per tonne - well over the guaranteed price – and more than $105 per tonne in 2024 – more than $20 above the guaranteed price.
The NFP President says the coalition government assures growers that after they receive their final payment for the 2024 harvest in October, they will yet again pocket well above $100 per tonne.
Chand says they don’t lie.
He says Chaudhry promised cane growers 99-year leases under ALTA but after winning the government offered 30-year leases, which he had repeatedly criticised as a sell-out by the NFP.
Chand says it is Chaudhry and FLP who promised workers a minimum wage of $120 per week but after winning government said they had meant $120 per week for a family.
He further says the growers received one of the lowest 3rd cane payments of $8 per tonne in March 2000.
Meanwhile, Chaudhry says the sugarcane farmers are angry over the low third cane payment of $12.23 per tonne for their 2024 crop which is almost $11 less than the third payment of $23.14 for the 2023 crop. Chaudhry earlier said that farmers have been paid $69.63 for the 2024 crop, leaving a balance of only $15.37 for the remaining two payments - to reach the minimum guaranteed price of $85 per tonne fixed in 2018 since when cultivation, harvesting and transportation costs have risen significantly.
He says if the minimum price was increased to $110, as promised, it would have gone up by $25, allowing for higher cane payments.
The National Farmers Union General Secretary says the farmers are demanding answers from Professor Prasad and the Prime Minister on why the minimum price has not increased as promised.
They are calling on the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister to honour their promise and increase the minimum guaranteed price to $110 per tonne as promised in their election campaign.
He adds that the farmers deserve better.
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