Duavata Initiative Ltd was registered through Munro Leys who got a lot of work from the SDL government – AG

Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says there was a company Duavata Initiative Limited that was in fact registered through Munro Leys who subsequently got a lot of work from the SDL government.

He says the directors of the company were Laisenia Qarase, Ratu Jone Kubuabola, Kaliopate Tavola, Marica Karikaritu, Joel Sahai and Mere Samisoni.

Sayed-Khaiyum says the whole purpose of the Political Parties Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures Amendment Act is to bring about transparency.

He says there was no such provision before in Fijian electoral laws where you had governance regarding political parties and how they were funded.

Sayed-Khaiyum says prior to 2014, companies and individuals could write big cheques to political parties.

He adds when he was in the private sector, he was once invited by somebody to attend a dinner held at the Holiday Inn where the ticket per person was $1,000.

Sayed-Khaiyum says they said why don't you come to this dinner and he said he couldn't afford $1,000 nor did he support that party.

He says they said to come along because it's free as one of the bigger companies managed to buy a few tables and they are giving away tickets.

Sayed-Khaiyum says the name of that company was not registered as a donor.

He says that the company bought about two or three tables and they all went there for free just to have a good feed.

Sayed-Khaiyum says this is how funding was done previously.

Sayed-Khaiyum adds in the same way you could have some companies going to a soli or some Gosh Fulia and basically saying we are paying $5 but you could have one company paying for the whole thing and there will be no record.

He says this is precisely the reason they need to have accountability because people have numerous ways of bypassing these laws.

Sayed-Khaiyum says the laws the Opposition is complaining about is equally applicable to FijiFirst.

While responding to comments made on Munro Leys, the Managing Partner, Glenis Yee says Sayed-Khaiyum’s comments are ridiculous.

She says Munro Leys formed Duavata Initiative Limited nearly 20 years ago, in the same way, it has formed hundreds of other companies.

Yee says they received instructions from a client and they charged a fee in the normal way.

She also says Munro Leys did not get “a lot of work” from the Qarase government.

Yee says before 2007, Munro Leys worked regularly for the Government and some of its commercial enterprises.

She says in some cases this was for decades.

The Managing Partner also says Munro Leys created some of Fiji’s biggest Government-owned companies from as early as the 1970s.

Yee says they do not understand Sayed-Khaiyum’s fixation with Munro Leys at a time when Fiji is in crisis and needs him to be focused on more important things.