Fiji High Court sentences former Prime Minister to prison for perverting the course of justice News
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Fiji High Court sentences former Prime Minister to prison for perverting the course of justice

Fiji’s High Court sentenced former Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama to one year of imprisonment on Thursday after finding him guilty of perverting the course of justice, according to a statement published by the country’s Director of Public Prosecution.

Frank Bainimarama was sentenced alongside suspended Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho for using their positions and power to stop a police probe into allegations of corruption at a Fijian university. The former Prime Minister was sentenced to one year in prison for attempting to pervert the course of justice, while the Police Commissioner was sentenced to two years of imprisonment for abuse of office.

The case dates back to July 2019, when the administration of South Pacific University filed a complaint to the police to investigate corruption, misuse of power and mismanagement from the university’s staff members. One year later and while he was still in office, Frank Bainimarama instructed the Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho to halt the investigations. The Guardian reported that the former Prime Minister and Sitiveni Qiliho were first found not guilty and acquitted by Suva Magistrates Court in October 2023, but the State’s prosecutors appealed that acquittal.

The Acting Chief Justice found both men guilty as charged and approved the appeal. Hence, he overturned the case to the lower court’s magistrates to follow through with the conviction and sentence the Prime Minister and the country’s top police officer. However, the Magistrates Court didn’t follow these instructions and discharged both of the defendants, with no sentence for Frank Bainimarama and a fine of $1500 for Sitiveni Qileho. For this reason, the country’s Director of Public Prosecution filed an appeal to the High Court. The latter quashed the lower court’s decision and upheld the appeal, pronouncing the mentioned imprisonment sentences for both men.

Frank Bainimarama was initially a military commander who came to power as President after a bloodless coup in 2006. He later became prime minister after winning the country’s first elections in 2014 and was elected a second time in 2018. He ruled the country until the December 2022 elections, when he was succeeded by Sitiveni Rabuka, the current Prime Minister.

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