Hon. Premila Kumar Criticizes Acting PM Biman Prasad's Debt Management Claims

Opposition Member of Parliament, Premila Kumar, has accused Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Professor Biman Prasad, of presenting a misleading narrative by stating that Fiji's debt-to-GDP ratio has improved by 75%.

Kumar contends that this is a desperate effort to hide the government's reckless fiscal mismanagement.

Kumar stated, "Let's get straight to the fact: Has Biman Prasad paid off any loans because of a surplus budget? Has he stopped borrowing? Has he cut unnecessary operational expenditures? The answer is no. Debt continues to rise, borrowing persists, and wasteful spending remains unchecked."

She attributed the temporary spike in the debt-to-GDP ratio to the impact of two category four and five cyclones in 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the economy to contract by 17.2% in 2020 and 4.1% in 2021.

"So why is the debt-to-GDP ratio declining? The answer is simple: GDP has increased naturally as the economy recovered, not because of any fiscal discipline by the coalition government," Kumar explained.

Kumar criticized the government for borrowing nearly FJD$1 billion more since taking office, despite no major disasters or pandemics, and for failing to curb reckless spending. She noted that Fiji's debt-to-GDP ratio stood at 79.9% in January 2023 and dropped to 75.4% by October 2024 due to the post-pandemic economic rebound.

"The truth is that since coming into power, the coalition has borrowed nearly FJD$1 billion more, despite no major disasters or a pandemic, all while failing to curb its reckless spending," she said.

Kumar accused the government of raising revenue through taxation instead of managing expenditures and expanding the bureaucracy with 34 ministers and assistant ministers. "Instead of finding real solutions, the government has resorted to the easiest and laziest way to raise revenue—taxing hardworking Fijians instead of managing expenditures," she stated.

"They have expanded government bureaucracy, bloating the administration with 34 ministers and assistant ministers—a record-breaking waste of taxpayers' money."

She also claimed that the coalition government is repackaging existing policies and that Prasad's claim of reducing debt is a political ploy to mask the government's inability to manage public finances.

"Biman Prasad's claim of reducing debt is a calculated deception—a political ploy to mask the coalition government's inability to manage public finances. He must stop deceiving the public and start taking responsibility for his government's failures," Kumar added.