Lasys week Fiji’s military leader Frank Bainimarama blamed Slade for Fiji’s exclusion from the Pacific trade ministers’ talks held in Samoa last month.
In a statement, Telefoni said: “The secretary general, Tuiloma Neroni Slade, felt the Forum Leaders’ decision to suspend Fiji, included the exclusion of Fijian trade officials from technical trade meetings.
“It was the view of ministers that since any trade agreements, such as the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union and even Pacer-Plus, by implication bind Fiji — I should write Forum leaders to consider this issue when they meet in Cairns Australia in early August.”
Telefoni is the chairman of the PACP and Forum Trade Ministers Meeting.
“Clearly, there is a case for including Fijian trade officials at technical trade talks,” Telefoni said, “but that is not a decision for Secretary General Tuiloma to make on his own, and Forum ministers supported the motion to seek further direction.”
Telefoni concluded: “It is certainly patently unfair to expect Secretary General Tuiloma to make any such decision without a clear mandate from Forum Leaders.”
Earlier last week, Bainimarama said: “It was unfortunate the secretary general went beyond his mandate to unilaterally exclude us from the European Union funded trade talks.”
Political commentators said Fiji’s exclusion could nullify any trade agreements Australia, New Zealand and the European Union sign with Forum Island countries.
