Director of Public Prosecutions Christopher Pryde has blamed the Judicial Services Commission for delaying his return to work.

He states that the hold-up is entirely due to the Commission’s failure to resolve new complaints made against him.

In an email sent to the media, Pryde said he was ready to return to his post as he had been cleared and reinstated by the President.

However, he claims the JSC has not acted on further complaints made by Acting DPP Nancy Tikoisuva.

He said he responded to the complaints on February 14 and has since followed up with the JSC, but neither the Chief Registrar Tomasi Bainivalu nor the Commission have acknowledged his letter or provided any update.

Pryde said he also wrote to Attorney-General Graham Leung, copying in Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad, but received no response.

“I have made it clear that I am ready to return to work, but I need an undertaking from the JSC that I will not be suspended again or have my salary cut once I return to Fiji,”

He said he had already spent two years under suspension and went without pay for seven months, calling the experience a breach of natural justice.

In the same statement, Pryde also criticised the reinstatement of Acting DPP Laisani Tabuakuro, calling the move “disturbing” and “a poor reflection on the current management of the ODPP.”

He claimed Tabuakuro was not suspended, as stated in a recent article published by a daily newspaper but had her contract terminated after failing to pass her probation.

Pryde said her conduct over the past year included unauthorised public statements, inappropriate political comments and disrespectful behaviour toward colleagues and the judiciary.

He described her communication with him as “insolent” and said her actions had brought disrepute to the Office of the DPP.

In a termination letter dated January 30, Pryde told Tabuakuro her probation would not be extended and that she would no longer be an ODPP officer after February 6.

“The disciplinary process ended with the termination of her employment,” Pryde said.

He maintained that she was not a suitable fit for the office and questioned why she had been allowed to return.

Pryde has called on the JSC to urgently respond to his correspondence and provide a clear decision so that he can resume his duties without further delay.

FBC News has forwarded the concerns and questions raised by Pryde to the Attorney-General, Prime Minister and the Chief Registrar and we are yet to receive a response.

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