Unity Fiji announces many new measures in their manifesto

Unity Fiji has stated in it’s manifesto that it will extend free education upto tertiary-level education, forgive all the current TELS loans, raise the income tax threshold to $40,000 (meaning no income tax to be paid if you earn $40,000 or less), reduce income taxes for those earning less than $50,000 and will increase the minimum wage to $5 an hour to help pay for the high cost of living.

While announcing the manifesto in Suva today, Unity Fiji Leader, Savenaca Narube says they will remove the Toppers and TELS program, and bring in free tertiary education.

He says the party will continue to assist students at primary and secondary school levels and reduce the teacher-to-student ratio estimated at over 50 to 30 by addressing the shortage of teachers in public schools.

Unity Fiji will also re-establish TVET schools nationwide and consult with stakeholders to develop a new model for TVET in Fiji.

Narube says to keep the cost of living down they will maintain a zero rate of VAT on the 21 items, increase the items that are under price control, and review the fiscal and import duties on essential food items.

He further says the party will review the templates of prices of items under price controls to ensure that the burden is shared equitably between the people, the private sector and the government.

He further says they will review the instruments of monetary policy to keep prices low and initiate a program of import substitution through the Economic Transformation Program.

He says the integrated Economic Transformation Program will provide machines, build processing centres, find markets and provide capital including the establishment of a natural resource commercial bank.

He adds the Economic Transformation Program will narrow the income disparity by providing jobs and income to rural people.

He further says the party will reduce border taxes on selected items to reduce prices and increase cane prices to $110 a tonne to help sugar cane farmers.

Narube says they will implement other income-supporting measures such as index pension allowance to inflation, lift the retirement age of public service to 60 years old, and reimburse FNPF withdrawals made during the COVID-19 pandemic for those earning under $40,000.

He adds they will support SMEs through capital grants and remove the no jab no job policy.

Narube states the party will improve people's health access to basic services and will increase the health budget by $200 million to improve health facilities and provide necessary medicines and improve health services.

He adds Unity Fiji will increase the allocation to housing by $100 million to build 1000 houses per year.

Narube says the party will restore the rights and freedom and establish a commission to review the 2013 Constitution.

He also says the biggest challenge Fiji is facing is poverty and 30% of the population were facing poverty before the pandemic.

Narube says the party estimated poverty at 40% of the population and that is about 400,000 people living in poverty and 75% of the population that lives in poverty are indigenous people.

Narube adds they will reinstate the Great Council of Chiefs, consult widely on the most effective structure of the GCC and establish a land commission to review all land issues.

He says the party will review laws including the Public Order Act and the Media Act that limit the rights and freedoms under the Constitution and have more equitable ethnic distribution of public service positions.

The Unity Fiji party leader further says they will establish a national security commission to recommend measures to strengthen national security and avoid a political crisis, increase resources to the Fiji Police Force and strengthen training and establish an independent Police Service Commission to strengthen discipline.

He adds to empower owners and users of resources, Unity Fiji will reverse all legislations, decrees and administrative policies that have weakened the control of the land by the landowners and increase the allowable tenure to a minimum of 50 years for leases under ALTA through consultations with the landowners.

He says the party will allow longer leases with appropriate conditions to compensate for the loss of the assets to two generations of landowners and establish a Land Review commission to examine and resolve land issues including crown land, freehold land and native land.

Narube further says the party will appoint a Constitutional Review Commission to review the imposed Constitution. He says the commission may refer to the 1997 constitution and the draft constitution of the Yash Ghai Commission.

He says the party will appoint a new Electoral Commission to organise a national referendum on the Constitution Amendment Bill. He adds healing the wounds of the past, they will establish a Commission for Peace and Reconciliation as soon as possible after coming into government, and they will learn from the other countries that have undertaken such a commission.

He says the commission will address the injustices that people received in the 1987 to 2006 coups and correct the injustices of people that were prevented by law to seek redress from government.

He adds they will review the compensation given to tenants and landowners when the land leases expired in 1999 to 2000 to ensure that the compensations were properly based and that they were adequate.