2022 General Election: ‘No reference to race’ – Rabuka on new student plan

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People’s Alliance party leader Sitiveni Rabuka Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU

The People’s Alliance (PA) new student plan mentioned in the party’s manifesto makes no reference to race, says party leader Sitiveni Rabuka.

He said this in response to comments made by FijiFirst (FF) party general secretary Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum that the PA’s student plan was a clear indicator the party was not a fair party and that their “entire modus operandi, their obsession is with ethnicity”.

“We totally reject the malicious propaganda by the (FFP) that a new student plan will be based on race,” Mr Rabuka said.

“This comprehensive scheme will apply to all students equally.

“It is contained in our manifesto with no reference to race on this issue.”

He said the student plan was formulated as the party saw no merit or justice in the current Tertiary Education Loan Scheme (TELS).

“Unlike the FijiFirst Government, we have no intention of imposing on our young people massive financial burdens.

“A People’s Alliance government will cancel debts of over half a billion dollars in student loans to pay for their higher education.

“These will be replaced with full scholarships containing bond conditions.”

Mr Rabuka said the student plan would be funded from an existing budget allocation of $162.6 million and included students serving a bond equivalent to the number of years they studied in tertiary institutions.

“They will work in Fiji for an average of three to four years in the private or public sectors, or with non-government organisations (NGOs).

“That would compound the financial crisis already caused by the Minister for Economy Mr Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.

“He has saddled us with approximately $10 billion dollars of national debt that will have to be paid for over the years by all the families of Fiji.”

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