Sunday 28th June 2020
National Federation Party Vice-President Davendra Naidu has accused the Fiji Sugar Corporation of negligence claiming it is now obvious FSC wasn’t prepared for the start of the 2020 crushing season.
Mr Naidu said with the Lautoka sugar mill shut down last week due to boiler problems and now Rarawai mill broken down since Friday evening, it is clear that FSC grossly failed to get the two mills in full operational state before the start of the season.
“Last week the Permanent Secretary for Sugar said he did not want to comment on the NFP Leader Professor Biman Prasad’s questions on whether state of preparedness of the mills was certified by the Sugar Industry Tribunal before determining the start of crush date”.
“The same applies to the Rarawai mill. More than 400 lorries laden with sugarcane are waiting for their load to be dumped since Friday. All we are told that the mill has teething problems”.
“This is nonsense. FSC must be truthful. Any teething problem concerning any operation doesn’t shut down a factory for three days”.
“What this means is that cane growers in all six districts in the Western Division, from Rakiraki to Sigatoka, are suffering losses as both mills are not operating”.
“Growers throughout the Western Division cane belt already suffered losses when TC Harold damaged the cane crop. These delays are increasing their pain and misery”.
“A vibrant sugar industry with functional mills has always been important for the success of local economies of many cane districts”.
“We expected a smooth start to crushing to breathe some oxygen into the seriously depleted local economy but unfortunately this isn’t happening”.
“All this is the result of total Government control of the industry in which the cane growers as the largest and most important stakeholders have been rendered powerless and kicked from pillar to post”.
-ENDS-