National Federation Party Leader, Professor Biman Prasad now says it is not him who talked about vote rigging in 2018 after Attorney General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum challenged Prasad to give the details.
While speaking in a press conference, Professor Prasad claims it is one of Sayed-Khaiyum’s own party members, one of his own MPs, who talked about vote rigging, and Prasad says of course he is not going to tell Sayed-Khaiyum which MP said it.
According to the parliamentary hansard on August 29th 2022, Professor Prasad said I do not want to name the honourable Member but he was drunk somewhere in one of the hotels and he said to his friends, “Oh, we will win again like we won the last time because we rigged it. We are going to rig it again.”
Prasad said in parliament that this is what a Government Member is telling his friends.
According to the hansard, a government member then says making up stories.
Prasad then says this is not a story and he will name that man when they debate the Electoral Bill, do not worry.
Sayed-Khaiyum then said in a press conference on September 9th 2022 that it had been more than a week since the claims of rigged elections by NFP Leader Professor Biman Prasad in parliament and there has been no revelation by him. Sayed-Khaiyum said in the heat of the moment Professor Prasad stood up and said that he knows the elections were rigged and he was going to reveal the name of the person who said that from the government side.
Sayed-Khaiyum says if you look at NFP and other opposition members, they seek to undermine the very electoral system they want to participate in.
He adds the Multi-National Observer Group reports have said the past two elections have been held in a credible fashion.
Sayed-Khaiyum says they believe this year’s elections will be held in a credible fashion because the Electoral Commission and the Fijian Elections Office run a very tight ship and run it very professionally.
