The final results of the 2022 Fiji general election are in and there appears to be a “hung” Parliament
The make-up of the new 55 seat Parliament — according to the Fiji Elections Office results app — will be FijiFirst with 26 seats, the People’s Alliance Party with 21 seats, the National Federation Party with 5 seats and the Social Democratic Liberal Party (Sodelpa) with 3 seats.
In order to be able to form government 28 seats are needed.
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This means that for the first time since the return of democracy to Fiji in 2014, the 2006 coup leader and incumbent Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama’s dominant FijiFirst Party has failed to secure the majority of seats to rule.
Bainimarama will now need to woo at least one of the three opposition party leaders to join him if he is to remain in power.
The People’s Alliance Party — led by 1987 coup leader and former prime minister Sitiveni Rabuka — and the National Federation Party, led by Professor Biman Prasad, formed a pre-election coalition and are unlikely targets for the FijiFirst leader.
But Sodelpa, led by Viliame Gavoka, made no such pre-election promises.
Gavoka also has close family ties to Bainimarama’s right-hand man and the Attorney-general Aiyaz-Sayed Khaiyum.
There is also bad blood between Sodelpa and Rabuka, who broke away from the party to form his current People’s Alliance Party, after having led Sodelpa through the last election in 2018.
Supervisor of elections Mohammed Saneem said the official elections results would be handed over to the Electoral Commission later this afternoon.
‘Not hypocritical’, says Duru
The Fiji Times reports that Sodelpa’s general secretary Lenaitasi Duru denied that the party was being hypocritical negotiating with FijiFirst.
“It’s not hypocritical if you’re going to bring change by joining FFP leader Voreqe Bainimarama,” Duru told the media outside the party headquarters in Suva.
“Right now we’re sitting in the middle, we’re watching and waiting for what is on offer.
“Then, we’ll make the decision based on what’s best for the nation.”
When questioned on the possibility of the party dropping below the five percent threshold he told The Times they are holding on and hoping for the best.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
