Naomi Matanitobua Raikaci Calls for a Two-Stage Referendum on Fiji’s Constitution

Naomi Matanitobua Raikaci has urged Fiji’s parliamentary committee handling constitutional amendments to slow the process, arguing that ordinary voters need more time to understand the proposals. Speaking for Unity Fiji, she said the party was not opposed to reform itself, but was concerned about the pace and the limited opportunity for public discussion. Raikaci told the committee that a constitution should bring people together for generations. In her view, rushing the changes could leave the country with a new document resting on the same weak foundations as the old one. She also cautioned that earlier consultations by the Constitution Review Commission could not replace proper public engagement on the current amendment bill. She said committee consultations had reached less than two percent of the population and called for the proposed constitution to be taken to communities at grassroots level. Raikaci also noted that the committee had received no formal submissions from Fijians living overseas, according to the report. Unity Fiji opposes putting the full constitution to a vote on the same day as the general election. Raikaci argued that election campaigning should not be halted for a referendum, saying voters should still be able to hear from those seeking office. She warned that a rushed adoption could prompt doubts about the document’s legitimacy, overshadowing any provisions people might support. Instead, she proposed a two-stage referendum. The first vote, held on election day, would ask no more than five straightforward questions about major issues rather than detailed wording. After the election, a newly mandated Parliament would use those responses to revise the bill. The revised proposal would then be explained to communities in three languages during 2027 before voters consider the full constitution in a separate referendum, with what Raikaci described as proper voter education.