Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said calling on the government to declare a public holiday to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the indentured labourers is a political stunt.
Bainimarama made the comment after NFP Leader Biman Prasad urged the government to declare a public holiday on the 11th of November, 2016 to commemorate the anniversary in recognition of the indentured labourers and their contribution to the developments in Fiji.
Prasad said 60,553 indentured labourers were brought from India between 14th May, 1879 and 11th November 1916.
He said 11th November is when the indentured period ended.
The Prime Minister said there will be no public holiday.
He said in the wake of Tropical Cyclone Winston, most of the schools and homes and all other damaged public buildings and infrastructure need immediate and focused attention.
Bainimarama said rebuilding our future is the main priority.
He said as the Shadow Minister for Finance Biman Prasad’s major concern should be to cater for the desperate needs of the ordinary Fijians of all backgrounds.
He said history has shown us that when people suffered greatly because of their ethnicity, the greatest gift we can give them is to restore their dignity, give them the rightful place in the society and treat them as equals.
Bainimarama said the constitution guarantees them general equality, guarantees them equal vote and equal value, and that was the core demand of the NFP leadership in 1950s and 60s and it took the Fiji First government to finally deliver this.
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