Sour end for Fiji Sugar Corporation Chairman

Updated September 6, 2010 17:42:20

The Chairman of the Fiji Sugar Corporation has resigned after less than two years in the role amidst a disastrous sugar harvest year. Guatam Ramswarup's resignation came within days of the the Cane Growers Association's call for him - and the board - to step down. The country's four sugar mills have suffered constant stoppages, machinery break downs and cane supply shortages which could cause huge financial losses. In August, Interim Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama promised to fix the mills, and save the industry. Mr Ramswarup is yet to be replaced as Chairman of the Fiji Sugar Corporation, and an interim chairman is expected to be appointed at the next board meeting.

Presenter: Stephanie March
Speaker: Lieutenant-Colonel Manasa Vaniqi, Fiji's Permanent Secretary for Provincial Development and the Sugar Industry

VANIQI: He has made the decision to resign from government, from the FSC, I am sorry.

MARCH: Did he resign for personal reasons or professional reasons?

VANIQI: Well, for professional reasons I would say.

MARCH: It has obviously been quite a difficult time for the sugar industry in Fiji. Would you say the former chairman is responsible for that and that is the basis for his resignation?

VANIQI: Well, what I could say is the industry has to move forward whether with him or without him. We have been looking into other areas as well. The consultancy firm of Deloitte of New Zealand, has just completed its review of the FSC and I would not attribute anything to Mr Ramswarup. All I could say is that he has served his time, he has been a former CEO of FSC and in serving his time he has got that experience in the industry. But like anything else, that comes to an end of his position and the industry has to move forward with the new people, with the new board members who are able to take the industry forward.

MARCH: The report from Deloitte what did it find?

VANIQI: Well, it is a rearrangement of the programs that were there previously, it has always been highlighted previously. But what Deloitte was commissioned by government to have a look at the overall, the issues if FSC.

MARCH: Aside from changing the board and changing the structure at the FSC, what other measures is the government taking to try and resurrect the sugar industry?

VANIQI: The sugar industry, there is a whole lot of people that are dependent upon, about 200-thousand that are the farmers and their extended families that depend on sugar and the government has made the commitment to turn the industry around and make it sustainable and viable at the same time.

MARCH: What is the government doing to make that happen?

VANIQI: Well, what we are doing, I mean it is all common knowledge now that we are changing the tenure system and the way that was happening previously. The leasing arrangement used to be only 30 years. Now the government has undertaken some new lease activity in the formation of the new land bank and we are going to extend the lease through that instead of 30 years to 99 years term. To bring about that this is one of the things that the government is doing, make a long term tenure and the lease make more stable and everybody to encourage investors to come in and invest. Not only that, the government has pumped in 15 million in the re-branching program and it has also rendered 9.8 million into the subsidy on fertilisers to the farmers. These are some of the things that government is undertaking at the moment.

MARCH: There has been constant machinery breakdowns at various mills which is just causing havoc for the industry. What's been done to reduce those mechanical problems?

VANIQI: Well, I am not an engineer, but we have got the people who are there, they are already undertaking that. (inaudible), has also sent in its own engineers to assist and the FSC are working 24 hours to ensure that he mills breakdown minimise at all costs and yeah the people are doing that one right at the moment, because that is where everything rests to ensure that the mill is able to make sugar, has the capacity to make sugar and the machineries must be improved at all costs, no doubt about it.

MARCH: I understand that the FSC is expecting to have made a huge financial loss for the last season, possibly one of the biggest in the corporation's history. Do you have any idea what sort of losses you are expecting to see?

VANIQI: I would not make that one comment now, but I think there is something in the main, because our government especially the minister and the prime minister has yet to be informed. They will be putting their views across to us and we'll finally put it government.

MARCH: And so what time do you think it will be made public, what sort of losses have been incurred?

VANIQI: I think the FSC board will have to make that one to us sometime this week.

Mr Ramswarup is yet to be replaced as Chairman of the Fiji Sugar Corporation, and an interim chairman is expected to be appointed at the next board meeting.