I’ll have to read COI report and decide the follow up actions my powers allow me to take - PM

Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka says he will have to read the Commission of Inquiry report and decide the follow up actions his powers allow him to take.

Rabuka confirms that he received the report from the Commission of Inquiry into FICAC this afternoon.

He says it is 415 pages long.

President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu confirms that he will await and be guided by advice from Prime Minister Rabuka on the publication of the Commission of Inquiry report into the appointment of FICAC Commissioner Barbara Malimali and the work of FICAC, and implementation of the COI’s recommendations.

The Commission of Inquiry’s Terms of Reference issued in October 2024 include examining whether due process was followed in the appointment, whether there was any breach of legal or ethical standards, and the impact of any such issues on the work and reputation of FICAC.

Under the Constitution, the FICAC Commissioner is appointed by the President on the advice of the Judicial Services Commission.

The Commission of Inquiry has also handed over their final report to the President.

The handover formally took place at State House, where the Sole Commissioner, Justice David Ashton-Lewis, accompanied by the Commission’s Counsel Assisting, Janet Mason, a senior legal practitioner from New Zealand, tabled their final report to the President.

While accepting the report, President Lalabalavu conveyed his sincere gratitude to Justice Ashton-Lewis and Mason for their commitment and diligence throughout the inquiry process and thanked them for the compilation of the report and careful formulation of the recommendations made in the report.

The President says the Commission's terms of reference require it to make recommendations to improve transparency, accountability, and public trust in State institutions, in this case, in FICAC.