[File Photo]

Former Prime Minister, 1987 coup leader, and now The People’s Alliance Leader, Sitiveni Rabuka has added a new tale to his 1987 coup.

Speaking at a press briefing in New Zealand during his recent trip overseas, Rabuka says if there had been a coalition, the upheaval would never have happened.

Despite the damage done, Rabuka says the 1987 coup had to happen.

Rabuka says the event could have been avoided if the then-Alliance government had formed a coalition with the National Federation Party.

He says if there had been cooperation on the floor of parliament established long before 1987, it would have negated any need for a coup.

“It had to be done, it had to be done as I said it was a step that we had to do and it could have been avoided if the politicians before that had negotiated the way forward.”

Rabuka admitted that it was not an individual decision as it was necessitated by the political circumstances of the time.

“We had to go through that at that time and we have learnt from it and say alright how else we can do it better. We started with the cooperation between the Opposition and the government between 1992 and 1999.”

The 1987 coup inflicted racial discrimination and is known as the event that destroyed Fiji.

Rabuka says he is hopeful there will be no repetition of such an event.

He says it could only be avoided had politicians negotiated a way forward without racial confrontation.