Leader of the Opposition (Fiji)
The post of
Leader of the Opposition is a political office common in countries that are part of the
Commonwealth of Nations. It did not originate in
Fiji but has a long tradition; in
British constitutional theory, the Leader of the Opposition must pose a formal alternative to the government, ready to form a government himself should the
Prime Minister lose the confidence of the
House of Representatives. In addition, the Leader of the Opposition chooses 8 of the 32 members of the
Senate, Fiji's upper house of
Parliament, and has the right to be consulted about the appointment of the
Chief Justice.
In Fiji, the Leader of the Opposition is formally appointed by the
President. The appointment is not at the president's personal discretion, however, as he is required by the
Constitution to appoint the person most acceptable to the majority of the Opposition (defined as members of the House of Representatives who belong to political parties not represented in the
Cabinet). In theory, that means the parliamentary leader of the largest Opposition
party. In practice, the person most eligible may decline the office, as was the case between
2001 and
2004, when
Mahendra Chaudhry, whose
Labour Party holds 28 of the 30 Opposition seats in the House of Representatives, adamantly refused to accept the position of Leader of the Opposition, insisting that he and his party wanted representation in the Cabinet instead. Until he reversed his position late in
2004 (following the collapse of negotiations with Prime Minister
Qarase), this forced the President to appoint
Mick Beddoes, the sole parliamentary representative of the
United General Party, as Leader of the Opposition.
