Pacific / Fiji

Fiji's Rabuka invites other parties to join Sodelpa

07:39 am on 24 December 2016

Fiji's Opposition Sodelpa has invited other parties to officially join with them in order to unseat the governing Fiji First party in the next elections.

Sodelpa leader Sitiveni Rabuka extended the invitation to political parties both inside and outside of parliament.

Mr Rabuka said working together was crucial to attain victory in the 2018 elections.

"It's only wise that we forge the next general elections together. I understand that each party has its own characteristics and they may want to retain those, so going into a coalition may not be comfortable for them but a number-sharing option would be the one for us to go for, under one umbrella," he said.

Although there have been reports of the National Federation Party and Sodelpa holding discussions about a coalition, the NFP's Biman Prasad has said such talk was premature and technically not possible before.

Sodelpa has lost two stalwarts in recent times with former Opposition leader Mick Beddoes and youth activist Peter Waqavonovono resigning to create their own party.