Rabuka has no right to speak on tourism until he owns up to his short-sighted demand to Keep Fiji Closed - Koya

Minister for Tourism, Faiyaz Koya has today stated that People’s Alliance Leader, Sitiveni Rabuka has no right to speak on tourism until he owns up to his short-sighted demand to Keep Fiji Closed.

Koya says the Government has opened Fiji for happiness and they are making our tourism industry more successful and sustainable than ever.

The Minister says they never needed Rabuka’s politics to do that and the Government never will.

Koya says Rabuka should admit he was wrong and move out of the way of the country’s recovery before he makes a shadow of Fiji’s future.

Koya says he could not believe a headline he read this week where Rabuka claimed that Denarau is a shadow of what it used to be.

The Tourism Minister says Rabuka knows full well that if he had his way and Fiji stayed closed, Denarau would be a ghost town of empty hotels and promises.

Koya says because the Government stuck to it’s plan and targeted approach, they are now on the road to more jobs, investments and opportunities.

He says the best is yet to come and bookings are extremely positive for the rest of the year.

Koya also says this Easter holiday was another big win for Fijian tourism, adding to the over 80,000 arrivals we have welcomed since our 1st December re-opening last year.

The Minister says he also has a report that explains exactly why Fiji is succeeding: An Economist Intelligence Unit analysis of 28 countries in the Asia-Pacific that ranked Fiji number one in tourism readiness, putting us ahead of countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

We have sought comments from Rabuka. He is yet to respond.