SODELPA to call management board meeting to make casual President and VP appointments

The Opposition and SODELPA Leader Sitiveni Rabuka has today confirmed that he will be calling the Party’s Management Board urgently to fill the positions of SODELPA President and Vice President casually next week, before the May 27th 2020 deadline set by the Supervisor of Elections.

Rabuka says he also commends Watisoni Nata, Emele Duituturaga and Miliakere Leawere, who were part of the group that petitioned the court for a ruling on the issues they were dissatisfied about within the party.

[Watisoni Nata]

He says the three visited him earlier this week and he assured them that he will do his best to map out a way to bring back harmony and unity in the party as they prepare for the General Assembly this year and the general elections in 2022.

Rabuka also says he was very much encouraged by their pledge of loyalty to him, particularly their trust that he will use his office as Party Leader to fill the vacuum left in the Executive Offices of the Party to ensure plain sailing from here onwards.

Rabuka says every effort will be made to call the Management Board meeting urgently to appoint an Acting President and an Acting Vice President to fill the casual vacancy, and he is pursuing all avenues to broker and mediate a settlement between the parties within SODELPA.

He says this will allow SODELPA to continue its operation until the planned Annual General Meeting in June in line with the requirements of the Registrar of Political Parties.

Rabuka urges the members of SODELPA to have faith and remain committed to the ideals and principles of its founding members, to respect the rule of law and operate within the framework of the Party Constitution, to accommodate members’ views.

Rabuka says he has been informed that three of the defendants, Ro Filipe Tuisawau, Adi Litia Qionibaravi and Usaia Waqatairewa have exercised their individual right to appeal against the judgement of the High Court, to the Court of Appeal.

[Emele Duituturaga]

Rabuka says the appeal does not preclude an out of court settlement reached via mediation efforts, that could later be registered with the court; both sides could apply to the court for orders in terms of the Deed of Settlement.

He also says he is sad that those affected by the ruling wish to appeal, but he respects their right to do so at their own cost, leaving out the Party to utilize its meager financial resources for preparing the Party for the elections.

Rabuka says the Party will continue to operate normally and prepare for the Annual General Meeting as required by their Constitution to be held by the end of June.

Ro Filipe Tuisawau, Adi Litia Qionibaravi and Usaia Peter Waqatairewa have personally filed through their solicitors, their appeal in the Fiji Court of Appeal against the High Court judgement pronounced on 23rd April 2020 by the Suva High Court.

[Adi Litia Qionibaravi, Ro Filipe Tuisawau, and Usaia Waqatairewa]

Ro Filipe says service has been effected on all the respondents.

They believe the appeal will assist with Fijian jurisprudence and clarify the SODELPA Constitution, in terms of practice and application.

Ro Filipe says they will be responsible for all appeal costs and not SODELPA. He says their appeal grounds are strong, filed within time, necessary to clarify the SODELPA Constitution and need to be determined urgently.

High Court Judge Justice Vishwa Datt Sharma had declared that the AGM of SODELPA in June last year in Savusavu breached the party’s constitution and the 2013 constitution and the election of Ro Filipe Tuisawau as SODELPA President and Adi Litia Qionibaravi as the Vice President at the AGM were invalid.

Justice Sharma has also declared the decisions, resolutions and outcomes of the AGM of SODELPA in June 2019 are invalid.

The High Court Judge has also declared that all subsequent actions, meetings, resolutions, decisions, outcomes and directives of the management board following the AGM of SODELPA including the acceptance of Adi Litia Qionibaravi’s retrospective resignation and the appointment of Usaia Waqatairewa as the General Secretary of SODELPA are unlawful, invalid and ineffective.

He also says it is a matter for the financial members of SODELPA to elect or remove office bearers of SODELPA and further it is not a matter for the court to do so.

SODELPA’s Suva Constituency President Watisoni Nata, SODELPA’s Youth Wing President, Jope Koroisavou, the party’s Vice President of the Women’s Forum, Doctor Mere Samisoni, the party’s Secretary of the Women’s Forum, Emele Duituturaga, SODELPA Women’s Wing Lami President, Kesaia Makita and the party’s Lami Youth executive, Asenaca Ravulo had taken legal action against the party executives.

The legal action was filed against Ro Filipe Tuisawau, Anare Jale, Adi Litia Qionibaravi and Usaia Waqatairewa.