Ratu ''Ratu'' () is an Austronesian title used by male Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, ''adi'' (pronounced ), is used by females of chiefly rank. In the Malay language, the title ''ratu'' is also the traditional honorific title to r ...

'' Naiqama Tawakecolati Lalabalavu, MBE (; born 23 December 1953) is a

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

Paramount Chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for a king or queen or the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a Chiefdom, chief-based system. This term is used occasionally ...

and the current

President of Fiji The president of Fiji is the List of heads of state of Fiji, head of state of the Fiji, Republic of Fiji. The president is appointed by the Parliament of Fiji, Parliament for a three-year term under the terms of the 2013 Constitution of Fiji, ...

. He has served as the leader of the opposition and as Speaker of the Parliament of Fiji. On 31 October 2024 he was elected

; he took office on 12 November 2024.

Tui Cakau

In 1999, Lalabalavu succeeded his late father, Ratu Glanville Lalabalavu, as the Tui Cakau, or Paramount Chief of Cakaudrove and of the Tovata Confederacy, one of three confederacies to which all Fijian tribes belong. He was challenged in court by Ratu Epeli Ganilau, son of former Fijian President Ratu Sir Penaia Ganilau who had himself held the Tui Cakau title prior to his death in 1993, but in 2001, the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

ruled in favour of Lalabalavu. He is a convert to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. Lalabalavu is the father of SODELPA Member of Parliament Dr Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu.

Political career

Lalabalavu was elected to represent the Lau-Taveuni-Rotuma Open Constituency in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

in 1999 as a candidate of the ruling Soqosoqo ni Vakavulewa ni Taukei (SVT), one of only 8 SVT candidates to win seats. He defeated his chiefly rival, Ratu Epeli Ganilau of the Christian Democratic Alliance, by a margin of 58 percent to 32 percent. Lalabalavu was appointed Minister for Fijian Affairs by George Speight during the

2000 Fijian coup d'état The 2000 Fijian coup d'état was a civilian coup d'état by an armed group of indigenous Fijian nationalists supported by the Counter Revolutionary Warfare Unit, against the elected government of Indo-Fijian Prime Minister Mahendra Chau ...

. By the time the 2001

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

was held to restore democracy, some major political realignments had taken place. Now a leading member of the Conservative Alliance, a nationalistic party which included many supporters and associates of George Speight, the chief instigator of the 2000 coup, Lalabalavu won the Cakaudrove East Fijian Communal Constituency, one of 23 reserved for ethnic Fijians in the House of Representatives. In the

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

that was subsequently formed, Lalabalavu was appointed Minister of Lands and Mineral Resources. The appointment was later harshly criticized by

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

''Adi'' Koila Nailatikau, daughter of former

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

''Ratu Sir'' Kamisese Mara, who had been deposed in the coup. She accused him of having ordered the burning of the Matailakeba Cane Farm in Seaqaqa (owned by Ratu Mara) in the midst of an army

mutiny Mutiny is a revolt among a group of people (typically of a military or a crew) to oppose, change, or remove superiors or their orders. The term is commonly used for insubordination by members of the military against an officer or superior, ...

at Sukanaivalu Barracks in

Labasa Labasa (, ) is a town in Fiji with a population of 28,500 at the 2010 census. Labasa is located in Macuata Province, in the north-eastern part of the island of Vanua Levu, and is the largest town on the island. The town itself is located on a ...

on July 29, 2000. On 6 April 2003, it was reported that Lalabalavu had called for an overhaul of the country's constitutional institutions. Political authority, he said, should be returned to Fiji's chiefs. He said that as it was the chiefs who ceded the islands to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 1874, paramount authority should have been returned to them when independence was granted in 1970. As a first step, he proposed the abolition of the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, the functions of which could be taken over by the

Great Council of Chiefs The Great Council of Chiefs () is a Fijian constitutional body. It previously existed from 1876 to March 2012 and was restored in May 2023. It is different from the House of Chiefs, a larger body that includes all hereditary chiefs, although m ...

, he said. He opined that restoring the authority of the chiefs would lead to a breaking down of Fiji's race barriers, as the chiefs would then be the leaders not only of the

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

, but of all races. His proposal was rejected by Ratu Epeli Ganilau, who was then the

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the Great Council. He was the Minister for Lands and Minister for Mineral Resources in the Cabinet of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Laisenia Qarase Laisenia Qarase (pronounced ; 4 February 1941 – 21 April 2020) was a Fijian politician. He served as the Prime Minister of Fiji, sixth Prime Minister of Fiji from 2000 to 2006. After Republic of Fiji Military Forces, the military quashed the 2 ...

, but was forced to resign after being convicted of unlawful assembly and jailed for his actions during the coup. He was subsequently released under a compulsory supervision order, having served only 11 days of his eight month sentence. The

Fiji Village ''Fiji Village'' (stylised ''Fijivillage'') is an online news website in Fiji which is fully owned and operated by Communications Fiji Limited. It covers local, political, business, sporting, cultural, and other news items. ''Fiji Village'' is ...

news service reported on 23 February 2006 that some chiefs wished to nominate Lalabalavu for the office of

Vice-President A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

in the 2006 presidential election. When the

met on 8 March, however, it reelected unopposed

Josefa Iloilo '' Ratu'' Josefa Iloilovatu Uluivuda, (29 December 1920 – 6 February 2011) was a Fijian politician who served as the 3rd President of Fiji from 2000 until 2009 following the 2000 Fijian coup d'état, excluding a brief period from 5 ...

and

Joni Madraiwiwi as President and Vice-President, respectively. Following the

parliamentary election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

held on 6–13 May 2006, he became Minister for Fijian Affairs again, as well as Minister for Lands and Provincial Development. He was deposed in December 2006 by the

2006 Fijian coup d'état The Fijian coup d'état of December 2006 was a coup d'état in Fiji carried out by Commodore (rank), Commodore Frank Bainimarama against Prime Minister of Fiji, Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase and President Josefa Iloilo. It was the culminatio ...

Post-coup career

Lalabalavu ran as a candidate for the Social Democratic Liberal Party in the 2014 election, winning 6668 votes, the 6th highest-polling candidate. Following the election he was appointed Shadow Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources. In May 2015, Lalabalavu was referred to the privileges committee for making derogatory comments about Speaker of Parliament Dr Jiko Luveni at a constituency meeting. He was suspended from Parliament for two years. On July 15, 2015, Ratu Naiqama launched a constitutional challenge, heard by Chief Justice Anthony Gates, against Speaker Jiko Luveni and

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum for his suspension. The case was argued in September 2015, but the suspension expired before a decision was made. In June 2015, Lalabalavu was elected as SODELPA president. He was re-elected in June 2017. Lalabalavu had planned to retire from politics, but changed his mind and stood for re-election in the

2018 elections The following elections occurred in 2018. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. Africa *2018 Djiboutian parliamentary election 23 February 2018 *2018 Sierra Leonean general election 7 and 31 ...

. He was elected, winning 2,165 votes. On 22 October 2024, he was nominated by the People’s Alliance for the presidency of Fiji. On 31 October he was elected president in the 2024 Fijian presidential election, defeating Meli Tora 37 votes to 16. He was sworn in on 12 November.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lalabalavu, Ratu Naiqama 1953 births Living people Ai Sokula Converts to Roman Catholicism Conservative Alliance-Matanitu Vanua politicians Fijian chiefs Fijian politicians convicted of crimes Fijian Roman Catholics Government ministers of Fiji I-Taukei Fijian members of the House of Representatives (Fiji) I-Taukei Fijian members of the Parliament of Fiji Leaders of the opposition (Fiji) Members of the Order of the British Empire Politicians from Taveuni Presidents of Fiji Social Democratic Liberal Party politicians Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua politicians Soqosoqo ni Vakavulewa ni Taukei politicians Speakers of the Parliament of Fiji Tui Cakau