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RNZ News
7 days ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
Fiji's top prosecutor in NZ accused of corruption claims charges are politically motivated
Fiji's suspended chief prosecutor, New Zealander Christopher Pryde Photo: Christopher Pryde Fiji's top prosecutor claims moves to extradite him on corruption charges are designed to intimidate and get rid of him. Christopher Pryde, who is in self-imposed exile in Aotearoa, claims charges brought by the country's anti-corruption agency this week are bogus. He believes the Fijian government wants to stop him prosecuting those maligned in a Commission of Inquiry report into the former head of the agency. On Tuesday, the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) announced it had begun extradition proceedings against the 60-year-old. FICAC'S decision came soon after President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu suspended Pryde's FJ$250,000 (approximately NZ$184,000) salary. "These are heavy-handed tactics that are designed to intimidate me and to prevent me from coming back to Fiji and resuming my duties," Pryde said. He is seeking a judicial review of the President's decision in the High Court in Suva. Pryde has been charged with three counts of corruption by the Suva Magistrate's Court, namely that he allegedly: He has denied any wrongdoing and told Pacific Waves the charges were politically-driven. Neither the New Zealand High Commission in Suva nor the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Wellington have so far responded to his requests for support, he said. Pryde was hired in 2011 by convicted former prime minister Frank Bainimarama, who seized power in a military coup in 2006. Bainmiarama returned the country to democracy in 2014 with a landslide victory in a general election. Pryde was suspended on full pay for "misbehaviour" in April 2023, after he was seen talking to former Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum at a cocktail function in the capital. Sayed-Khaiyum was under police investigation at the time but Pryde maintains he never read his file. In April last year, he was also charged with receiving superannuation payments that had not been approved by the JSC. Pryde's superannuation ceased then his salary and all contractual benefits were "unilaterally" cut off by the Fijian government in July 2024. However, he was exonerated in January, following a week-long investigation by a Tribunal, which recommended he not be removed from his position. Two days after he was cleared, he was hit with fresh charges, similar to those he is facing now. He claims he addressed them at the time. A spokesperson for FICAC declined to comment on Pryde's allegations, saying the matter was "sub judice". The government's director of information Samisoni Pareti echoed her response. "As this matter is before our courts in Fiji, there won't be any official response to the matters Mr Pryde has raised with your organisation," he said. The court adjourned the case until 15 September for an update on the extradition process.
RNZ News
05-08-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Fiji's anti-corruption watchdog charges top prosecutor, initiates extradition proceedings
Fiji's suspended chief prosecutor, New Zealander Christopher Pryde Photo: Christopher Pryde Fiji's anti-corruption watchdog has charged the country's top prosecutor, who is in self-imposed exile in New Zealand, with corruption. The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) has also initiated "extradition proceedings" against New Zealander Christopher Pryde. In a press statement on Tuesday, FICAC said Pryde had been charged in absentia on three counts by the Suva Magistrates Court. FICAC claims that while serving as director of Office of Public Prosecutions, Pryde "approved and received" approximately NZ$102,000 without obtaining the necessary approvals from the President's Office and the Judicial Services Commission. "He is charged with causing a loss, on the basis that he dishonestly caused financial loss to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions by accepting these unauthorised payments." FICAC said Pryde faces a second count of abuse of office for allegedly approving and receiving eight reimbursements for airfares for his wife and child (worth approximately NZ$35,000), and has been charged with obtaining a financial advantage by knowingly receiving payments to which he was not entitled. The anti-corruption office is also alleging that, on or about 16 September 2022, Pryde was reimbursed almost NZ$6000 for unused air tickets by Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. It alleged that, although the airline refunded him directly, he failed to return the amount. The court has adjourned the case to 15 September for an update on the status of the extradition process. Pryde had been reinstated to the role in January of this year following a 21-month suspension. In a statement to reporters, Pryde said he is "dismayed" at FICAC's decision "without giving me the right to speak in my defence". "This is a clear violation of my civil and constitutional rights. I categorically deny any wrongdoing," he said. "The decision by FICAC to charge me in absentia lead me to the conclusion that there is a concerted effort to keep me out of Fiji and prevent me from resuming my duties as the Director of Public Prosecutions." Earlier this year, Pryde had written to Foreign Minister Winston Peters to intervene in his case after his salary was cut of by the Fiji government. Pryde is a New Zealand citizen and held Fiji's top prosecutor position from 2011. He was suspended in April 2023, midway into his seven-year contract, over allegations of misconduct. A three-judge Tribunal appointed by the President later cleared him of any wrongdoin, and reinstated on 7 January. However, just two days after this reinstatement, his deputy - who had been serving as the acting director public prosecutions - filed a fresh complaint against him with FICAC. Pryde maintains his innocence and says he has not returned to Fiji because he has not received assurance by the Judicial Services Commission that they would not suspend him upon his return. "And I would be forced to, once again, defend myself whilst being deprived of my income".
RNZ News
08-07-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Fiji's ex-anti-corruption head to fight 'destroyed career' after damning inquiry
Ashton-Lewis, 75, was paid $AU2000 a day during the nine week hearing, which involved 35 witnesses . It took a total of six months to go through the material. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Fiji Government / FICAC The former head of Fiji's anti-corruption agency may move to have the damning Commission of Inquiry report into her appointment quashed. Barbara Malimali - described as "universally corrupt" by the commissioner of the inquiry - was suspended by Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka on 29 May. Her lawyer Tanya Waqanika told Pacific Waves that Justice David Ashton-Lewis' public remarks has destroyed Malimali's legal career. Rabuka released a redacted copy of the final report on the government's website last Monday, but leaked copies have been circulating for weeks. Justice Ashton-Lewis found that six members of government and four lawyers lied under oath, obstructed justice and perverted the course of justice. "I've done my job, the rest is up to up to Sitiveni Rabuka to act," he said. Justice Ashton-Lewis said the edited version cuts out almost an entire chapter of adverse findings against individuals, in a bid not to prevent or bias any subsequent police investigations. He claims it exposed what he called a systemic failure of integrity at the highest levels of Fiji's governance and justice systems. Ashton-Lewis said Malimali's appointment to the role last September was legally invalid, ethically reprehensible and procedurally corrupted. "She was a pawn in the hands of devious members of government, who wanted any allegations against them or other government members thrown out," he told RNZ Pacific. Waqanika said Ashton-Lewis' allegations in the report are merely his "narrative" and the real truth lies in the court transcripts. She claims his public comments destroyed Malimali's reputation. "He made a defamatory and derogatory comment in a podcast and called her universally corrupt," Waqanika said. "It's an issue of clearing her name, she has has built up her legal career over 20 years and that statement alone has pretty much destroyed her career." Ashton-Lewis said the evidence from cross-examination of Malimali and from the many who spoke against her showed she was "universally corrupt". The main findings of the inquiry include: Malimali has instructed Waqanika to write to the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) to complain about the Commissioner on the grounds of "misbehaviour". According to Ashton-Lewis, Malimali was a pawn in the hands of devious members of government. Photo: X/Fiji Women However, she was vague about the details, saying "misbehaviour" was a broad term but might include his "lack of credentials". Waqanika also claimed the inquiry went outside its terms of reference and believes other lawyers involved in the investigation will try to have the report thrown out on this basis. Ashton-Lewis, 75, was paid $AU2000 a day during the nine week hearing, which involved 35 witnesses . It took a total of six months to go through the material. He handed the the 681-page report to Rabuka and President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu on 6 May, and said the terms of reference were strictly followed. "The terms of reference were not only about Mallmali's appointment, they include the question of whether there was any undue interference in her appointment and I found there was," he said. "We did our job correctly. They (Malimali and Waqanika) can yell as loud as they want, but I think any moves to have the report quashed will be lengthy, costly and unsuccessful.". Ashton-Lewis said there were four attempts during the inquiry to shut it down, including a claim that it breached the constitution. "We were appointed under the Commission of Inquiries Act, not the Constitution, so that was erroneous." Ashton-Lewis said there were "discriminatory" attacks, suggesting that as foreigners they had no right to question Malimali. Waqanika complained to the Prime Minister and the President, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu, that Ashton-Lewis, an Australian, was "white". She also questioned the suitability of barrister Janet Mason, his assistant. Ms Mason is a Fijian citizen who is part iTaukei and lives in Wellington. "I wasn't expecting that kind of racism, I've never experienced that in all my years in the High Court," he said. Waqanika claimed there was a lack of accountability and transparency during the inquiry, with only one commissioner and a media ban in place. "Why wasn't it open to the public and the media? The optics for the coalition government are not good, especially with the general elections next year." Ashton-Lewis said he was hand-picked by the Prime Minister. "He (Rabuka) set this investigation up and it was his decision to have only one judge. He chose me because he wanted someone outside of Fiji who was not obligated to any tribal or cultural group." "He knew there were crocodiles in the pond and he wanted them found", he said. Meanwhile the anti-corruption agency is now investigating one of the deputy prime ministers, Manoa Kamikamica, for perjury. Investigators from the anti-corruption agency issued a search warrant on Thursday and Kamikamica's cellphone was seized. He told The Fiji Times that he assumed it was to do with the inquiry and would like to set the record straight . "There are some big gaps in that report, which is quite disappointing, they make allegations without any factual evidence," said Kamikamica, who is also the Minister for Trade. "There are issues with the report, it's a very one-sided interpretation of facts, if you want to call them facts. As the commissioner said, its all hearsay on hearsay, are we now starting to accuse people based on rumour and innuendo?" However, Ashton-Lewis said did not admit "hearsay on hearsay". "I did not, I only ever made my findings on the basis of clear, direct oral evidence from witnesses," he said. During the inquiry a former cabinet minister, Kalaveti Ravu, described Kamikamica as a "wannabe Prime Minister." When RNZ Pacific questioned the deputy prime minister recently about Ravu's comment, he replied "stop bothering me". Ravu was accused by the agency of interfering in a ministerial investigation into the suspected illegal trade of a banned species of beche-de mer (sea cucumbers). However he was acquitted in the Suva Magistrates Court in February. Fiji's opposition leader Inia Seruiratu last week demanded Ratu Naiqama suspend the Chief Justice Salesi Temo. Seruiratu told FijiLive a tribunal should be set up to investigate Justice Temo's conduct. "The Attorney-General (Graham Leung) has already been removed, a necessary first step, but not the final one. One cannot pull the matchstick and leave the fuel untouched," he said. "Three of the country's highest legal officers remain in place, their credibility compromised, their accountability unresolved. This is not a call for vengeance, its a call for justice." Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka sacked Leung on 30 May after a version of the report was leaked to the public. Sitiveni Rabuka said in a government statement that inquiry's findings had made it "evident" that Leung's position in his Cabinet was now "untenable." Leung last week slammed the report. He told local media that the report's findings were "the trumph of media prattle and lazy legal guesswork". "There's an allegation that I conspired with others to appoint Malimali's appointment. I reject that categorically," Leung said. But Ashton-Lewis replied: "I never said he conspired with anyone, Graham Leung simply failed to carry out his job as Attorney General during the appointment." "Both Leung and Temo knew Malimali was being investigated for abuse of office, but they failed to stop her appointment. He said they should have investigated further, but did not. Charlie Charters, whose mother-in-law was the son of the late former opposition MP (SOLDEPA) Adi Mere Samisoni, said in a blog there was "no need to import a fancy white man" to head the hearing. "We look like real kaicolo (highland) jungle bunnies, waiting to be told the good and the bad among us, by someone who is happy to laugh in private at our primitive bow-and-arrow ways," he wrote. "It's hard not to reflect on how this whole fiasco has diminished Fiji," he wrote. Ashton-Lewis laughed, saying he was known for his stylish three-piece suits.
ABC News
19-06-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Inquiry finds appointment of Fiji's former corruption commissioner "ethically reprehensible"
The former head of Fiji's corruption watchdog says she'll fight to clear her name, after a report into her appointment was leaked on social media and to local and international media organisations. The report by a Commission of Inquiry is scathing of the process surrounding Barbara Malimali's appointment as head of the Independent Commission Against Corruption last year and the senior officials involved. It describes it as legally invalid, ethically reprehensible , a damning failure of integrity and politically manipulated to install a compromised individual into a position of immense power. Ms Malimali and the others adversely named including the Chief Justice, the Chief Registrar and former Attorney General have not been given a copy of the report. The leak has complicated an already messy situation for the government as Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka had held off releasing the report while police and FICAC conducted their own investigations. Ms Malimali who was dismissed from the position following the inquiry, says natural justice requires anyone named in the report to be given a copy to challenge it.
RNZ News
18-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Fiji Police investigating Commission of Inquiry report into appointment of sacked anti-corruption commissioner Barbara Malimali
Barbara Malimali says she wants to be able to protect Fiji from corrupt public officials. (X: Fiji Women) Photo: X/Fiji Women Fiji Police have commenced investigations into a Commission of Inquiry report on the appointment of the country's now sacked head of the anti-corruption office. Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka stood down Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) commissioner Barbara Malimali last month after a months-long inquiry was completed. Malimali was appointed as FICAC chief in September last year despite being under investigation by the anti-corruption office. Opposition figures at the time slammed it as "unbelievable" but the government backed her appointment. The 648-page inquiry report, prepared by the Commissioner of Inquiry and Supreme Court Judge David Ashton-Lewis, has rocked Rabuka's coalition government in recent weeks, with one political expert calling it a "full-blown crisis" . The report, which has now been leaked online, includes allegations not only against Malimali, but senior government officials and lawyers, including the nation's highest judicial officer and the head of the Law Society. Local media are reporting that the inquiry found a "systematic failure of integrity" across Fiji's governance and justice systems. They report that the inquiry states the appointment process for Malimali was "legally invalid" and "ethically reprehensible". Read more: Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu confirmed via a statement on Wednesday that investigations into the Commission of Inquiry Report findings commenced after the police received a formal letter of referral from President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalau. "A formal letter of referral was sent to the Fiji Police Force and the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption, to investigate the Final Report of the Commission of Inquiry and persons of interests, and where warranted, prosecution," he said. Tudravu said he has met with the FICAC acting Commissioner Lavi Rokoika, alongside senior Fiji Police officers "to discuss the specific areas of investigation to be undertaken by our respective institutions, to avoid duplication, and ensure efficiency of the investigation process". He has given his assurance for a thorough independent investigation by the team of senior investigators from the Criminal Investigations Department. "A Commission of Inquiry report into the appointment of Barbara Malimali as head of the Fiji Independent Commission against Corruption has cost the country's Attorney-General Graham Leung his job, embroiled Fiji's Law Society in an acrimonious feud and exacerbated tensions in the governing coalition," Victoria University of Wellington's political science professor John Fraenkel wrote for the DevpolicyBlog on Tuesday. "The country's Chief Justice Salesi Temo is allegedly among those accused by the COI (though, at the time of writing, the report has not been publicly released). "Worryingly, given Fiji's history of coups in 1987, 2000 and 2006, military chief Jone Kalouniwai has visited the Prime Minister's office reminding the nation of his constitutionally-bequeathed responsibility for the 'wellbeing of Fiji and its people'." According to Fraenkel, the inquiry controversy comes at a critical juncture, with the Supreme Court due to rule on the legal status of the country's 2013 Constitution in August and with Fiji drawing closer to the next election, scheduled for 2026 or, at the very latest, February 2027.
