The trial against the former Deputy Prime Minister, Professor Biman Prasad started today in the Suva Magistrate court, with FICAC instrcuted to verify documents relating to the details of directorship of Platinum Hotel and Resort Limited.

In this case Prof Prasad is charged with Professor Prasad faces one count of failure to comply with statutory disclosure requirements.

He is also charged with providing false information in a statutory declaration Contrary to section 27(1) (c) of the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013.

FICAC’s first witness, Executive Officer of the Registry of Companies, Manase Talemaipapalagi told the court that he provided FICAC investigators with the directorship details of Platinum Hotel and Resort Limited during the investigation.

However, Defence Lawyer Richard Naidu challenged the admissibility of the document, arguing that the directorship details amounted to hearsay.

Naidu told the court that FICAC was seeking to rely on the document to establish the directors of Platinum Hotel and Resort Limited, but it was not an official document produced by the company itself.

He argued that the evidence was being presented to establish who the company’s directors were, while the document had been prepared by someone other than the witness who appeared before the court.

FICAC counsel, Joseph Work initially told the court that the company’s directorship details were not part of the evidence but he later submitted that the document qualified as a business record.

Magistrate Yogesh Prasad directed FICAC to verify the documents and provide copies to the Defence Counsel by tonight, ahead of tomorrow’s proceedings.

The trial will resume this Thursday.

It is alleged that between December 30, 2015 to January ,31 2016 at Suva being an officeholder of the National Federation Party, registered under the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013, failed to comply with Section 24(1B)(d), by providing to the office of the registrar his declaration of assets liabilities and income as at 31 December 2015 without disclosing his directorship in Platinum Hotels & Resorts PTE Limited thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 24(5) of the said act.

It is also alleged that on January 28, 2016 at Suva being an office holder of a registered political party, namely the National Federation Party, recklessly provided false information in a statutory declaration submitted to the Registrar of Political Parties under Section 24(1B) (d) of the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013, by solemnly declaring that the particular contained in his declaration of assets liabilites and income as at 31 December 2015 were true and complete when the declaration omitted his directorship in Platinum Hotels & Resorts PTE Limited, which omission rendered the declaration in material particular thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 27(1)( c) of the said act.

By: Litia Rabua