Members of the public gathered in Suva on Saturday to air their grievances, ask questions and seek clarifications on issues including the recent Parliamentarians pay rise amongst other things.

Organised by the Fiji Public Service Association and the Fiji Council of Social Services, members were able to ask questions freely and have the various processes and decisions by Parliament explained to them in simple terms.

FCOSS Executive Director Vani Catanasiga said the gathering was an avenue they identified to help workers and community leaders.

“Workers who are under the Fiji Public Service Association and community leaders and volunteers have always heard about bad governance. We’ve always complained about bad governance. We’ve done so from the safety of our homes, behind the screens and phones so now we’re trying to help citizens understand the importance of good governance, to understand the decisions that Government makes and the implications it will have on good governance generally.”

“As organisations that represent people, FPSA representing workers and FCOSS representing communities we are trying to help our leaders understand the priorities of our people because they’re not living their lives and struggles.”

Catanasiga said the rallies would be continuous and there are plans to hold it in other parts of Fiji.

“Having a rally means we can talk about this publicly and invite the people to come in and ask all the questions that they want to ask, and we will attempt to help them understand this.”