11 Jan 2008

Fiji's Methodists to boycott National Council for Building a Better Fiji

10:55 am on 11 January 2008

Fiji's Methodist Church say they are being pressurised by the interim government to participate in the National Council for Building a Better Fiji which begins work next week.

The assistant general secretary, Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu, says the Methodist Church will not join the council because it is undemocratic and does not represent the views of Fiji's people.

He warns that imposing the Council's charter on the people will not work and he is calling for more consultation with the people instead.

"It is unconstitutional. We believe that it is not the prerogative to formulate the charter for the next 15 to 20 years. We believe that the prerogative is to prepare the nation for the forthcoming general election. If the charter is going to be imposed on people and people reject the charter, then the charter will be a recipe for internal inrest in the nation."