Kaya Selby
RNZ Pacific journalist
The
Fijian government has found itself caught up in another
scandal after an explicit video involving one of its cabinet
ministers ended up in the public domain on the eve of Fiji
Day.
According to local media reports over the
weekend, the one-minute clip appeared on a prominent male
minister’s Facebook profile on Friday night before it was
taken down.
“The Minister concerned has not made any
comments since yesterday, and has also not said whether his
account was hacked or whether it was accidentally put up,” a
report on fijivillage.com on Saturday said.
“He
has also not confirmed if the Online Safety Commission has
been alerted as the video is now being circulated,” it
reported.
This is the second time an intimate
recording of a Fiji government minister has surfaced online
under Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s
administration.
An intimate video involving a female
cabinet minister was leaked
online and went viral on Christmas Eve in 2024, with the
minister stating the private recording was originally
intended for her husband.
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The minister was suspended
by Rabuka and removed as a cabinet minister in early 2025,
though
returned to a new portfolio later.
The latest
video scandal has dominated Fijian social media over the
weekend.
In its frontpage story on Monday, the Fiji
Sun reported that the prime minister is challenging
anyone making allegations against the minister concerned to
come forward with evidence and testify.
“I want
someone ready to testify against my minister so I can give
him the opportunity to defend himself,” Rabuka was quoted as
saying by the newspaper.
RNZ Pacific has contacted the
concerned minister for
comment.
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