Speaker of Parliament Filimone Jitoko has given Opposition MP Virendra Lal time until tomorrow to verify the facts of an incident at a temple in Tavua over the weekend and withdraw his statement or he will be making a ruling on it.
This comes as Minister for Lands Filimoni Vosarogo raised a point of order in Parliament, stating that Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection Sashi Kiran spoke about race relations tolerance index in Fiji according to Social Cohesion And Reconciliation (Score) Index Assessment in Fiji.
He says Lal referred to a particular incident at a temple in Tavua that the Prime Minister had opened over the weekend, and suggested that, despite what the Social Cohesion Index report says about moving forward together as a country, the incident may have been linked to racial or religious intolerance.
Vosarogo stresses they are neither both because he had inquired yesterday and was also informed by the proponent of the invitation to the Prime Minister, that it was someone who had jumped over the fence, took a hosepipe and a wheelbarrow.
He says the temple itself was not broken into.
INSERT: Vosarogo on out of context 28 apr
While giving an opportunity to Lal to respond, Jitoko says he will either withdraw the statement or he will go back to Hansard record and make his ruling later.
In his response, Lal says the information was given to him by those running the temple who told him that the Prime Minister had opened the temple in the morning, and then that same night, it was broken into.
Lal also admits that he does not know the full details of what occurred and has agreed to get verified information.
Meanwhile, Kiran says the Score Index Assessment shows that there is high level of trust and openness to peaceful coexistence and reconciliation among Fijians, however, we are operating in a climate where polarizing stories and harmful stereotypes still hold ground, threatening to pull us apart.
She says she called on the Members of Parliament to set example through the discourse and debate but Lal did the complete opposite while speaking about social cohesion.
Kiran says he spoke about the break-in at a temple in Tavua, insinuating it as an ethnic crime of religious intolerance.
She stresses that desecration of any religious space is not acceptable and must be denounced in strongest terms.
Kiran highlights that this month, a temple in Ba has been broken into multiple times and burnt, a temple in Nausori was broken into as well while Nawa Mosque, the country's oldest mosque, was broken into for the first time in its history this month.
She says intruders forced open a storage door and stole assorted items valued at approximately $6,500.
The Minister also highlights that Masjid Mohammadi Mulomulo was targeted twice in short period in 2024 while in early 2025, Wainadoi Markaz was broken into alongside two nearby temples where money was stolen from the donation box.
She says Maruru Mosque in Ba, in November 2025, an unknown individual entered the sound system room and stole a six-microphone amplifier while Kinoya AOG Church has been broken into four times this year and in the last year, they walked away with a safe worth $10,000.
Kiran also says that just ahead of this past Easter, Mount St. Mary's Church and School in Namaka, Nadi, were broken into in the early hours of March 11th, where perpetrators forced entry into the church's small chapel, stole the tabernacle, and later scattered the Holy Eucharist in a nearby field, causing significant shock and sadness to the Catholic community.
She says she did not hear the opposition MPs standing in this house and denouncing these acts.
Kiran stresses that all these acts must be denounced in strongest terms but these are not race-based crimes.
Opposition MP Alvick Maharaj raised a point of order, stating that the Speaker has issued a directive with regards to Lal’s statement and Kiran needs to stick to the statement she is supposed to give today.
Kiran added that social cohesion is everyone's responsibility and when they take a leadership role, and are leaders in Parliament, they must represent and take care of all ethnicities and all faiths in this country, especially in a world full of conflicts, our peace is very precious and we have to all work towards it.
