Sainimili Magimagi 
FTUC General Secretary Felix Anthony. [Photo: FILE]
The Fiji Trades Union Congress is calling for a major overhaul of Fiji’s electoral system, arguing the current model lacks accountability.
General Secretary Felix Anthony made the submission as part of consultations on the 2013 Constitution.
Anthony says the country should revert to a constituency-based system, where Members of Parliament are directly answerable to specific communities.
He argues the current system allows candidates with relatively low individual vote counts to enter Parliament on the strength of their party leader’s popularity.
He also raised concerns about MPs entering Parliament with as few as 500 to 600 votes, saying this undermines public confidence.
“We have people in parliament with little number of votes, but ride on the popularity of the leader of the party”
Anthony notes that under the previous system, MPs were assigned to constituencies and had a clear responsibility to the people who elected them.
The FTUC believes restoring constituency representation would strengthen accountability and reconnect MPs with the communities they serve.
