9 Jul 2013

Fiji AG justifies regime salary secrecy

1:30 pm on 9 July 2013

The Fiji regime leaders have again delayed the publication of their salaries, saying calls for disclosure are just political posturing by opponents.

In April, the attorney-general Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum promised he would disclose his in July after political parties claimed the Prime Minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, receives more than 700,000 US dollars a year.

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum now says salary information will be released after the finalising of the constitution, which has also been delayed.

He says there was a duty in the 1997 constitution to form a code of conduct and no previous government complied with it.

"None of them actually developed a code of conduct and none of them declared their salaries, none of them declared their assets and liabilities. The Bainimarama government has taken the responsibility and has said we will do that. And we will do that and in fact we are developing a code of conduct."

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says once the legal framework is completed, the Prime Minister will have to comply with as he has indicated he will form his own political party.