A detachment of 70 correctional officers led by Acting ASP Manasa Rakabikabi participated at the Fiji Day Parade at Albert Park on October 10.
It was the first time that the Fiji Prisons and Correctional Service has participated in the national day celebrations since Fiji was ceded to Britain.
The officers, despite the heavy showers and under conditions, acquitted themselves with professional pride and look resplendent in their number 1A dress of white and black for commissioned officers and maroon and white for the other ranks.
“The prisons department has always been forgotten but today is a proud day for me and the department to have been included in the parade,” says an officer after the parade.
The correction officers were part of the disciplined forces which included the military and police that took part in the celebration. His Excellency Ratu Josefa Iloiloivuda took the salute but the heavy rain caused the cancellation of the parade inspection.
The officers from all the disciplined forces and their families were treated to lunch at the Grand Pacific Hotel.
Programme for the Fiji Day included entertainment, cultural items and ended with a military tattoo in the trooping of the colour in the evening.