Greater decision-making powers should be returned to Permanent Secretaries instead of being concentrated in the hands of Ministers.
USP linguistics lecturer Rajendra Prasad made the submission at the University of the South Pacific, saying the 2013 Constitution gives Ministers too much authority, limiting the ability of Permanent Secretaries to make timely decisions.
Prasad referred to chapter 4-part B Section 95 (4) of the 2013 Constitution, which allows the Prime Minister to appoint a Minister to act in the office of another Minister when that Minister is absent from duty, out of Fiji or unable to perform their duties.
He says this has resulted in more decisions being made by Ministers rather than Permanent Secretaries, who are appointed based on merit and expertise.
Prasad says before 2006, many day-to-day government decisions were made by Permanent Secretaries, allowing quicker responses to issues affecting the public.
Using flooding in Naitasiri as an example, he says Permanent Secretaries were previously able to make immediate decisions.
Insert:Prasad on decision-making 2nd July 26
He says this has slowed decision-making and believes greater authority should be returned to Permanent Secretaries so government services can respond more effectively to people's needs.
Prasad also told the Commission that the Constitution needs clearer wording to avoid different interpretations, saying too much power has been concentrated in the hands of Ministers and the Attorney-General's Office.
Meanwhile, USP researcher and lecturer Dr Sevanaia Sakai says landowners should be required to invest part of the money they receive from their natural resources to help build long-term wealth for their families.
He says the constitution should clearly define, quantify and manage the fair distribution of benefits from Fiji's mineral resources.
Sakai says the Constitution currently refers to a "fair share" of benefits but does not specify how much landowners should receive or how those benefits should be managed.
He is proposing a mandatory investment policy for income earned from natural resources, saying this would encourage long-term wealth creation instead of the money being used mainly for consumption.
Sakai says such a policy would help improve the livelihoods of iTaukei landowners and ensure resource income benefits future generations.
He also questioned why many iTaukei landowners remain poor despite owning large areas of land, saying the Constitution should help address that contradiction through better management of resource income.
