Minister for Policing, Ioane Naivalurua has stressed that he has never heard a statement suggesting that the police could be used as a tool to threaten our people.
Naivalurua highlighted this in Parliament in response to concerns raised by Opposition MP Vijay Nath about the potential misuse of community policing efforts.
He says he has never stated that the police could be used to threaten people, nor has such a statement come from the Commissioner.
While delivering his ministerial statement, Naivalurua outlined the future of community policing in Fiji, describing it as a shared national responsibility essential to the country’s stability and development.
He highlighted that the National Security Strategy 2025–2029 calls for a whole-of-government and whole-of-nation approach, involving civil society, traditional leaders, the private sector, faith groups, and communities.
He says modern threats such as drugs, cybercrime, and transnational criminal networks require an integrated policing model rooted in Fiji’s cultural values and supported by social development.
Naivalurua stressed that crime prevention must involve strengthening livelihoods, improving connectivity, and offering legitimate economic pathways, particularly in areas like Kadavu and parts of Vanua Levu, where marijuana farming has become an economic fallback.
Responding to the statement, Opposition MP Vijay Nath says that while the Opposition agrees community safety is a shared responsibility, the government must ensure that police posts are properly staffed, equipped, and supported.
Nath says that without sufficient resources and accountability, community policing risk becoming symbolic rather than effective.
He says a national constituency is not created by announcements alone; it is built through trust, fairness, and the consistent enforcement of the law.
He adds that communities will cooperate with the police only when they see the law applied equally to everyone.
