Ni sa bula vinaka, Namaste, and warm Fiji Day greetings to you all.
Today, we come together as one people to celebrate 56 years of independence.
Fiji Day is an opportunity to recall what defines us, reflect on the journey we have travelled, honour those who came before us, and to look towards the future we are building.
Our national journey has not always been easy.
We have experienced times of progress and times of difficulties. We have faced political upheavals, pandemic, health and economic challenges, man-made crisis, natural disasters, and social change. Today we’re going through a drug and HIV crisis.
But through it all, Fiji has endured and will come out of the current crisis because we must.
Our people have shown courage, resilience and a remarkable ability to rise again.
That strength comes from who we are.
We are a nation of many communities, cultures, faiths, languages and traditions, but we share one home.
We share one Fiji.
And we share responsibility for its future.
That is perhaps one of the most important lessons of our 56 years as an independent nation: our diversity does not have to divide us.
It is our strength.
Our different histories and traditions form part of one national story, and every citizen has a place in that story.
As we celebrate Fiji Day today, our country is once again engaged in important conversations about our future.
We are considering questions about our Constitution, our democratic institutions and the kind of nation we want to leave to those who will follow us.
We do not strengthen Fiji by demanding that everyone thinks alike. We strengthen Fiji when we can disagree respectfully, listen to one another, seek understanding and allow our democratic processes to take their course peacefully.
In the weeks ahead, Fijians will continue to discuss the constitutional proposals before the country, and in December eligible voters will have the opportunity to, if passed by Parliament, exercise their democratic right through the national referendum.
Whatever our individual views may be, let us approach that responsibility with respect for one another, respect for our institutions and a shared commitment to Fiji.
Our Constitution belongs to the people.
And ultimately, the future of Fiji belongs to the generations who will inherit what we build today.
That is why our responsibility extends far beyond constitutional reform.
It is also about building an economy that provides opportunity.
It is about ensuring that development reaches our villages, settlements, towns and islands.
It is about strengthening our schools and health services, supporting our families, protecting our communities and ensuring that our young people can see a future for themselves here at home.
It is about confronting the challenges that threaten the wellbeing of our families and peace of our communities.
And it is about ensuring that the institutions entrusted to serve our people remain accountable, and worthy of public confidence.
Government alone cannot build that Fiji.
Nation-building has never been the responsibility of Government alone.
It belongs to all of us.
It belongs to our families and communities, our churches and faith organisations, our traditional leaders, our civil society organisations, our businesses, our workers, our farmers and fishers, our teachers and health workers, our disciplined forces, our young people and every citizen who contributes to the life of this nation.
Each of us has something to give.
And each of us has a stake in Fiji’s success.
From the highest office of the land to the farthest island in the group, we share this responsibility.
The Government is pleased of His Excellency the Presidents statement at the UN General Assembly; that in our term of government, both Presidents had addressed the world at the UNGA.
I thank all those that planned, coordinated and participated at the recent Pre-COP events in Nadi this week. For these I express gratitude to the:
I congratulate our sports representatives who are donning the national colours this year and wish them well.
And we wish the children in Examination Classes successful endings to their school year.
My fellow Fijians,
Independence gave us the right to determine our own future. But with that right came responsibility both at home and beyond.
Every generation must decide what it will contribute to the nation it inherited.
Our generation must choose unity over division.
We must choose dialogue over hostility.
We must choose service over self-interest.
We must choose hope over fear.
And we must continue building a country in which every Fijian knows that they belong and are valued.
The Fiji we leave our children should be stronger than the Fiji we inherited.
It should be a Fiji where the rule of law is respected.
A Fiji where our institutions serve the people faithfully.
A Fiji where our traditions and identities are respected.
A Fiji where development and opportunity are shared.
And a Fiji where differences are settled through dialogue, democracy and peace.
As we raise our flag today, let us remember what it represents.
It represents more than our independence.
It represents our identity.
It represents the sacrifices of those who built this nation.
It represents the hopes of our children.
And it represents the promise we make to one another that, whatever challenges may come, we will continue moving forward together.
There is still much work ahead.
But I remain confident in Fiji because I remain confident in our people.
We have overcome difficult moments before.
We have rebuilt.
We have reconciled.
We have moved forward.
And we can continue to do so with faith, courage and a sense of common purpose.
On this Fiji Day, let us celebrate not only how far we have come, but what defines us and the future that is still ours to shape.
As we move forward, we ask for God’s presence to guide us, to restore to us the destiny of this land as he had pre-determined and to love for one another as he loves us.
This is our country under God.
And this is our Fiji.
Happy Fiji Day to you all.
Vinaka vakalevu. Dhanyavaad. Thank you.
May the Almighty God continue to bless Fiji and all her people.