Minister for Sports, Jese Saukuru,CEO of Fiji Sports Council, Gilbert Vakalalabure
Questions continue to be raised from within the Ministry of Sports and the Fiji Sports Council about the risk of potential evidence tampering as Minister for Sports, Jese Saukuru and the CEO of Fiji Sports Council, Gilbert Vakalalabure remain in office after the announcement by the Prime Minister late last month that independent investigations will be conducted.
People are asking how independent the investigation can be when the people being investigated remain in the top positions.
They say this is nothing personal but these matters need to be handled professionally.
The issues mainly deal with alleged conflict of interest and decisions being made without the Sports Council Board's approval.
A whistleblower who is a former staff member of the Fiji Sports Council maintains many decisions being made were not approved by the Board which included business class travel under the Sports Council contra deal with Fiji Airways for Vakalalabure, his wife, the Sports Minister, Jese Saukuru and his wife's travel without the Sports Council's Board approval.
This contra deal was for the Sports Council.
It has also come to light that the Sports Council's grassroots 7s tournaments which cost a lot of money was being organised without the Council's Board approval, and the team going to NZ for a tournament there last year, also did not have Board approval.
Saukuru has not made any comments to fijivillage News after initially confirming to us that he and his wife travelled in business class under the Fiji Airways and Sports Council contra agreement.
Saukuru says he is willing to pay back the money for his wife's travel.
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka had earlier said that Minister for Home Affairs and Immigration, Pio Tikoduadua had resigned when there were allegations against the Ministry however Saukuru has chosen to stay on and is on an official tour of Yasawa and Kadavu.
Rabuka had earlier said that the investigation will have two components, one focusing on allegations of misuse of funds within the Youth and Sports portfolio, and the other examining claims relating to Saukuru’s trip to New Zealand, including concerns over the contra-crediting of his wife’s travel expenses.
The Prime Minister has not made further comments.
