A resident of Naidrodro Settlement in Ba, Mesulame Nakiole has highlighted during the Fijian Media Association’s Meet the Public and the Press town hall that they have requested land from the Rarawai Sugar Mill and the Ministry of Lands to build a church, but they have not received any response to date.
Nakiole says the community believes that establishing a church in their area could help address ongoing social issues affecting youths, including substance abuse and delinquency.
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has reminded communities that the solution to social problems does not solely lie in building churches.
Rabuka says many drug centres are located in villages and settlements that already have large churches, emphasizing that real change must come from within the people themselves.
Divisional Manager Lands in the West, Uraia Nakaria confirmed that the Ministry of Lands has received the correspondence and will follow the proper process.
He says inspections will be conducted and due diligence carried out to assess the validity and credibility of the request.
Nakaria adds that if the findings support the community’s proposal, a submission for a church lease will be raised accordingly.
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