A Fiji lawyer and opposition politician Aman Ravindra-Singh says he's not bothered about a lawsuit reportedly filed against him by the prime minister.
FBC News reports Frank Bainimarama has filed a civil defamation suit against Mr Ravindra-Singh who alleges Mr Bainimarama was a key player in the 2000 coup for which George Speight was jailed.
The Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama at Government House in Auckland. Photo: RNZ/ALEX PERROTTET
The Labour Party leader has alleged another coup leader turned politician, Sitiveni Rabuka, was also involved in the power grab which forced the resignation of the then president, Ratu Sir Kamasese Mara.
Mr Ravindra-Singh said the sequence of events which he wrote up on Facebook last week are based on public documents, including statements, documents gathered in the form of evidence, court judgements and other information he had gathered over the years.
He had not heard directly that a lawsuit had been filed against him but welcomed such a move.
Fiji coup leader George Speight (C) leaving the High Court in Suva after being sentenced for treason in 2002. AFP Photo: AFP
"Great," he said.
"Whoever chooses to file defamation action against me, I am ready, and I think in fact that'll be a good showdown because I will be able to present the evidence in a court of law which I'm hoping to do."
Aman Ravindra-Singh Photo: Supplied
"The information I put together in the form of a four-page document actually is not something that I dreamt up and put together as a fairytale but those are all the sequence of events which took place and it's based on historical documents."
He said as a lawyer he had based everything on legalities.
"I have not put myself forward lightly. I have based everything on evidence."
Mr Ravindra-Singh, who was appointed in March to lead the Labour Party's campaign for this year's elections, said he was not playing politics but speaking up against "glossed over" coups.
"I am standing by the truth and I will defend the truth at every cost."
Photo: AFP
Mr Rabuka, could not immediately be reached for comment, but in 2005, facing similar allegations, he maintained his innocence, saying he wanted to clear his name.
The leader of the SODELPA party is planning to fight this year's election, although he faces a court battle this month after being charged last week for alleged anomalies in his financial declarations for 2016 and 2017.