FEO ready for election, says Saneem

Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem speaks to regional journalists and media stakeholders during the recent political reporting workshop organised by the US Embassy at the Tanoa Plaza Hotel in Suva. Picture: WANSOLWARA STAFF

By WANSOLWARA STAFF

THE Fijian Elections Office is ready and on standby mode should an election be called, says Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem.

While no official date has been set for election this year, Mr Saneem said they were prepared to carry out election at more than 850 polling venues.

“Should an election be called, we are prepared. We have the staff, the resources and capacity. We are ready to run election,” he said a recent political reporting workshop organised by the US Embassy in Suva and attended by more than 20 regional journalists from Fiji, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Tonga and Nauru.

From left: Second-year journalism students Joeli Bili and Harrison Selmen with USP Journalism Programme co-ordinator Dr Shailendra Singh during the political reporting workshop at the Tanoa Plaza Hotel in Suva last week. Picture: WANSOLWARA STAFF

“Inside the polling stations there is a kit (for voters). This kit is now in stock. The last item to arrive was the indelible ink. We now have all materials in stock for us to run the election.”

Election security

According to Mr Saneem, the Fiji Police Force had been given a budget to carry out election security.

“There is no private security firm. The Fiji Police Force has a full plan to carry out the elections security program. For the pre-poll teams going to the islands, the Fiji Police will be going on the boat with them to ensure the ballot materials are properly carted,” he said.

He said independent observers would also be part of the election process to ensure transparency.

Election date

When pressed about the date for election, Mr Saneem said the announcement could be made between April and November but this depended on the Prime Minister.

“In Fiji, the Constitution says the Prime Minister may advise the President on a date (for election) so that depends on the Prime Minister. It is similar to Australia,” he said.

“Campaigning is already happening. (Though) the official campaign period starts after the announcement of the election date until the conclusion of the election, which is about 52 days.”

Journalists from Tonga raised queries regarding the independence of the Fijian Elections Office in the lead up to election.

“The date (for election) is the only thing that the Prime Minister chooses, everything else is done by the elections office. That’s the kick off for everything else to take place under the law,” Mr Saneem said.