Report – By the PMC news desk
The fugitive Fiji former military colonel, Ratu Tevita Mara, has called on the military regime to end the Public Emergency Regulation (PER) and “follow a roadmap to true democracy”.
“If [Prime Minister Voreqe “Frank” Bainimarama and Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum] are doing a good job, as they say, they have nothing to fear,” claimed Ratu Tevita, speaking from the safety of Tonga where he fled last month.
He had been be freed on bail on a sedition charge in an alleged plot against the regime and the Fiji government is seeking his extradition from Tonga.
“The [newspapers] will sing their praises and the public will only march in support of the illegal military junta,” Ratu Tevita said.
“Why then are they too scared to remove PER? The military junta won’t remove PER because they know without it they would be driven from power by the voices of the people.”
In a new YouTube video statement, Ratu Tevita said he had received “so much support” from both inside and outside Fiji.
“I know that the time is right for Khaiyum and his puppet to step down,” Ratu Tevita said.
‘Free to speak’
“Frank, you were my commanding officer once. Now I am free to say these words.
“You have been in charge for nearly 5 years. You talk about following a roadmap to true democracy in Fiji.
“Once again you are lost because Fiji is not heading anywhere for democracy because it is already a dictatorship. Instead of taking the country forward, the only direction you have led Fiji is backwards.
“Now it is my duty to ask you to step aside and let the people of Fiji pick the Prime Minister they want.”
Ratu Tevita called on “fellow citizens who want democracy” to give a thumbs up sign whenever they met friends, family and colleagues.
“You will be doing nothing illegal you cannot be arrested by the police; you cannot be taken in by the military.
‘Thumbs up’
“But everywhere you go, smile at the people you meet, in particular soldiers and policemen and give them the thumbs up – you will be moving Fiji ever closer to democracy.”
In Suva, an application for an extension of time to serve a bench arrest warrant on Mara was granted by the Magistrates Court on Wednesday.
The court granted an application by the Director of Public Prosecutions office to extend the time span of a warrant for the arrest of Ratu Tevita until August 3.
Ratu Tevita’s lawyer Devanesh Sharma did not oppose the application.
Cafe Pacific on the Mara ‘media circus’
Pacific Scoop
