Husband of Electoral Commission member key fundraiser for Fiji First

Kavita Raniga

Follow the money. 

That's what we've done and that's why we can reveal here that an Electoral Commission member is the wife of a Fiji First donor and a prominent fundraiser for the ruling party. 

A First First donation list, courtesy of a bank statement that's been provided to us, shows AJAY RANIGA gave $10,000 to Fiji First before the 2014 election. 

Raniga is a Fiji First financier and fundraiser, who is frequently seen with Aiyaz Khaiyum. 

His wife, Kavita, was appointed to the Electoral Commission early last year. 

The Raniga's $10,000 donation was banked in the Fiji First Account on the 7th August 2014. 

From the same bank statement it can also be seen that in July 2014 over 15 days, Fiji First's account ballooned from more than $85,000 to $530,000 plus!

Coup4.5 can also reveal that a month after Kavita Raniga was appointed to the Electoral Commission, her husband organised a fundraiser on Denarau Island at the Bombay Lodge Curry House and Beer garden.

The fundraiser was attended by Frank Bainimarama and Aiyaz Sayed Khaiyum, plus 55 leading local businessmen. The fundraiser took place less than 18 hours after a similar function at the Ba home of an RC Manubhai director, Bhavesh Patel. 

Insiders have confirmed that Ajay Raniga, along with Bhavesh Patel and Ashok Patel all directors of hardware giants R C Manubhai - are dedicated Fiji First fundraisers.

Sources say Raniga and others have exerted money from businessmen, refusing to settle for less than $10,000 from small to medium businessmen, extracting exorbitant amounts from prominent members of the business community who donate in the names of family and relatives to circumvent the $10,000 limit (a year) on political party donations. 

Most of these businessmen and their relatives have gone on to be appointed to boards of major statutory organisations. 

• Ajay Raniga's wife, Kavita, is on the Electoral Commission
• Bhavesh Patel is on the Water Authority Board
• R C Manubhai director, Dinesh Patel, chairs the Fiji Roads Authority Board 
• R C Manubhai director and Fiji Football Association president, Rajesh Patel, is on the Board of Fiji Development Bank 
• Ashok Patel, the company's Suva based director, is a member of the Land Transport Authority Board.

Kavita Raniga was appointed to the Electoral Commission early last year. The entire former Electoral Commission chaired by lawyer Chen Bunn Young was not reappointed and Raniga was one of the 7 new members of a Commission chaired by controversial Suva lawyer Suresh Chandra.

Sanjay Kaba is a member of the Constitution Offices Commission, that is supposed to be an independent body. He is closely involved with interviewing Fiji First candidates, that came to light in July this years and this hasn't been denied by both Kaba and Khaiyum.

Insiders say Ajay Raniga has so much influence and power that he, like others, threaten businessmen that they will be investigated  by Fiji Revenue Customs Authority if they don't make a donation. 

Ajay Raniga and Kavita Raniga operate a chain of stores under Budget Pharmacy of Nadi and have other business interests as well.

Faiyaz Koya: More fraud and bribery revelations

Bribery 

More information tonight has been leaked to Coup4.5  following our revelations on Monday night that Faiyaz Koya overstated his salary soon after his appointment as the Industry, Trade, Tourism, Lands and Mineral Resources Minister. 

Documents we received revealed that Koya obtained a million dollar loan from the Home Finance Company Bank, otherwise known as the bank established using workers Fiji National Provident Fund money, by lying about his salary.

The onus is on Faiyaz Koya, a favourite of Frank Bainimarama and Aiyaz Khaiyum to come out clean, provided he is transparent and clean that he portrays himself to be.

This time it is evidence of payments made to Koya's Account at HFC where he has a huge loan to pay. We have been told that he has been receiving $4,000 every month for NOTHING. His family home in Lautoka is a derelict and not on rent. So is his other property in Lautoka. His law office is as good as in a coma. 

So what is the payment for? And to make matters interesting, it is from CCCC-First Harbor Consultants, a State owned company from China.

So why would Koya receive payments from the Chinese State owned company?

The obvious answer is that CCCC First Harbor Consultants was awarded a contract to build a new mineral wharf at Lautoka. The site adjacent to the current Lautoka port was given to Amex Resources, a mineral extraction company that has been awarded a long term lease for extraction of sand containing minerals from Ba river basin - or an initial period of 15 years, which can go up to 45 years.

Who is the the Minister responsible for Mineral Resources? Faiyaz Koya.

We have been given a copy of the cheque above of CCCC First Harbor Consultants , made in the name of Faiyaz Koya, dated 2nd October 2017, that was deposited into his bank account a day later on 3rd October 2017.

This is apart from, what we have been informed are cash deposits of $4000 every month.

A bank would normally need a narration for deposits. Whether it be payment, rent, salary, allowances etc. No such narration was provided.

So what is the money for?

In what is too much of a coincidence, the raising of the cheque and its deposit is precisely at the same time as the handing over of the Lautoka port site to CCCC First Harbor Consultants - October 2nd as the date the cheque was raised and deposited a day later. https://www.scribd.com/document/387750879/Amex-to-Get-Lautoka-Port-Site-Handover

On 3rd October 2017, the news media carried stories of the site of the new port being officially handed over to CCCC First Harbor Consultants by Faiyaz Koya who was the chief guest - https://www.scribd.com/document/387750815/New-Port-Facility-for-Amex.

Too much of a co-incidence? You be the judge. But the fact that the date of the cash cheque corresponds with the handover in which Faiyaz Koya officiated makes one wonder if this cheque was made out in haste instead of cashing it and then depositing it as was the case in previous months preceding October 2017.

Was this an appearance fees? Or payment to be the chief guest? Or payment fast tracked by way of cash cheque just because CCCC First Harbor Consultants a Chinese State owned company's contract was finally fulfilled? 

Once again, You be the judge!

Faiyaz Koya exposed

Continuing our expose of corruption within the Fiji First Government here's one about a former Attorney General and now Industry, Trade and Tourism Minister, providing false information in order to gain for himself.

Documents obtained by C4.5 tonight reveal Fiji First Minister Faiyaz Koya falsely declared a higher salary on his application for a loan from the HFC - Home Finance Company Bank.

The unscrupulous Faiyaz Koya is another puppet who dances to the tune of Frank Bainimarama and Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, circumventing the system and breaking the law like his role models, for personal gain. He is a favourite of Frank Bainimarama's boys, with the dictator calling him Amitabh Bhachchan for his moves on the dance floor as well as sharing his cigarettes with the school dropout PM.

The documents are from 29th September 2014, five days after Koya was appointed Attorney General and Minister for Justice, a portfolio he held for less than two weeks before Khaiyum took over and Koya became Industry, Trade and Tourism Minister

In 2016 Bainimarama gave him additional portfolios of Lands and Mineral Resources, positions previously had by the reliable Mereseini Vuniwaqa.

The documents show Mohamed Harun of HLB Crosbie & Associates, acting as Koya's accountants wrote to HFC saying Koya was on a salary of between $260,000 to $300,000. The letter was written on 29th September 2014, four days before the Bainimarama regime promulgated the last Decree before Parliament started on October 6th, paying the Ministers hefty salaries.

But in the Decree the AG's salary was $235,000 while other Cabinet Ministers (except Health, Education, Infrastructure who were paid $200,000), were paid $185,000 per year.

Koya falsely over-declared his salary by $75,000 to $115,000 to qualify for a larger loan.

Within three days of his application, Koya obtained a loan of almost a $1 million. Which other ordinary customer, described as a politically exposed person according to the documents, would receive such a high amount of loan within three days?

At the end of November 2015, 13 months later, Koya applied for a another loan against his salary and assets that suddenly accumulated to $885,000. His liabilities were shown at only $150,000.

This is the way our nation has been run where the rules are different for the privileged few. And don't forget - this is after a military coup, that the regime says was a clean-up revolution to get rid of corruption!

And this is the man representing Fiji at Pacific Islands Forum in Nauru. So if the puppet is rolling in what he reckons is rich filth, it is no wonder that Khaiyum has millions stashed away as revealed last week.

And what is the Supervisor of Elections doing about this? Is he investigating the false declarations made by Koya and Khaiyum! Or is he on a witch hunt tormenting Opposition political figures?

Watch this space as we reveal more corruption within Fiji First.

Loan Application - Faiyaz Koya by coupfourpointfive on Scribd