Chaudhry accepts Qarase offer, disappoints him

By Amit Baruah

SINGAPORE, SEPT. 10. Mr. Laisenia Qarase, who was sworn in as Fiji's Prime Minister this morning, is an unhappy man. With the Fiji Labour Party (FLP) of Mr. Mahendra Chaudhry accepting Mr. Qarase's constitutionally-mandated offer to join his Government, the country's politics has taken a new turn.

``The... Constitution provides for a multi-party Cabinet and it has set a threshold at 10 per cent and any party reaching that threshold is entitled to be in Government,'' Mr. Chaudhry was quoted as saying in Suva. Mr. Qarase's ``offer'' to the FLP saw acceptance from Mr. Chaudhry. Now, it remains to be seen how many and what kind of Cabinet posts are offered by Mr. Qarase.

While the FLP won 27 seats in the 71-member House of Representatives, Mr. Qarase's Soqosoqo Duavata Ni Lewenivanua (SDL) Party got 31 seats. The SDL has also secured the support of some smaller parties.

Earlier, the Prime Minister said: ``I have made it no secret that I would be happy if he (Mr. Chaudhry) does not accept (the Cabinet posts) because it would be an unworkable Government.''

``You see, if we follow strictly the provisions of the Constitution, and supposing that he accepts it means that he will have to get eight seats. I get 12 (seats in Cabinet) and I have an obligation to give some to the smaller parties. Say I give five and I end up with seven so the numbers don't stack up. It will never work and this is the point that needs to be considered very seriously by all political leaders. It will be a Government that will not function properly.''

The Prime Minister, a former banker and civil servant, had urged Mr. Chaudhry to give up his right to Cabinet posts in view of the policy differences between the two parties. ``Given this, I genuinely do not think there is sufficient basis for a workable partnership with your party in my Cabinet... we are the majority party and it is simply inconceivable that we should allow a situation where we become the minority group in a Cabinet,'' he said in a letter to Mr. Chaudhry.

In a related development, The Fiji Times argued that the forced union between the FLP and the SDL may actually prove beneficial. In an editorial, the paper said: ``... given the policy and personality gap between the two men (Mr. Qarase and Mr. Chaudhry) and the two parties, it will be difficult (but by no means impossible) for them to cooperate.''

``The two main communities (ethnic Fijians and Indians) in these islands have been thrown together by an accident of history. But it is not an accident that history will reverse. In other words, we are destined to stay together whether we like it or not. Let's make the best of it,'' it said. ``A Government that represents the hopes and fears of both major communities might be a political hotch-potch difficult to operate but it would have the overwhelming advantage of being what the people want.''

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