There are some positives: Bainimarama

Interim Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama said he is not surprised with the statement from the Commonwealth Ministerial Action group which has set a deadline for Fiji to conduct elections.

Bainimarama said the statement is consistent with the outcomes of the Pacific Islands Leaders Forum, however he said there are some positives in the CMAG's statement.

He said in particular there is recognition that the Commonwealth and the UN are already working with key stakeholders in Fiji on the issue of restoration of genuine parliamentary governance to which him and the interim government is fully committed.

Bainimarama said a concrete and substantive example of this is the second meeting of the Leaders of Political Parties scheduled for March 13th as a lead up to the convening of the Presidents Political Dialogue Forum and that the interim government remains engaged with the Commonwealth and the UN on this.

With regards to a timetable for elections, Bainimarama stresses that he has been clear and consistent that there are a number of prerequisites which need to be satisfactorily accomplished before they can communicate with the Electoral Commission which will be able to give a definite dates for elections.

He said these prerequisites are part of the agenda for discussions at the upcoming Political leaders meeting.

The interim prime Minister said he anticipates that following the political leaders meeting the Presidents Forum would get underway without further delay.