Duxbury shut out

The Fiji Times - Thursday, November 05, 2009 1:20 PM

LACK of professionalism was displayed by the Fiji Rugby Union which used an employee as security guard to stop media personnel attending a press conference at Rugby House on Wednesday.

Teivovo magazine editor Jeremy Duxbury and staff Vela Naucukidi were stopped at the door by FRU official Aporosa Tuqovu.

"I received instruction from my superior not to allow these two to enter," Tuqovu said.

Both were seen sitting on the door steps of the FRU headquarters after the press conference.

Duxbury said they were shocked to be stopped at the door steps by Tuqovu at the FRU headquarters.

"We found out this morning that the FRU had banned Teivovo from the media conference, though we had not been informed officially," he said

Duxbury had received a brief email from a Louisa O'Connor (PA for acting FRU CEO Keni Dakuidreketi) stating that upon an earlier meeting between their Teivovo writer (Naucukidi) and
Dakuidreketi on women's rugby she had "obtained and leaked out" information from the FRU that was written on a whiteboard at Rugby House.

Naucukidi is the president of the Fiji Women's Rugby Union.

The information in question was the list of the 15 FRU officials who will go on the Europe tour this month.

"Vela mentioned the names to me, and I sent a reasonably sarcastic note to a media colleague at the Fiji Times about the number of relatives of the acting CEO that were going on tour and how much the FRU was spending to send them,” Duxbury said.

"Somehow, that e-mail later got into the possession of Dakuidreketi and he decided our actions warranted a ban from the media conference.

"We went to Rugby House in Gordon Street, but a burly chap by the name ofTuqovu was positioned at the door with instructions not to let us pass."

He added on reflection, the sarcasm about the make-up of the 15 FRU officials going on tour may have been unnecessary, but it was intended as a joke and was contained in a private e-mail.

They also maintained that none of the information given to the Fiji Times was in any way confidential.

O'Connor said Teivovo must furnish Dakuidreketi with an apology before they can be included on the media invite list again.

Duxbury said they would "write to him in due course."

The press conference was to announce the list of 15-officials who will be part of the tour party to the Northern Hemisphere where Fiji plays Scotland on November 14, Ireland on November 21 and Romania on November 28.