Prime Minister of Fiji

Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji
Coat of arms of the Republic of Fiji
Incumbent Frank Bainimarama since 11 April 2009
Appointer	President of Fiji
Term length	Not term limited
Inaugural holder	Kamisese Mara
Formation	10 October 1970

The Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji is the head of government of Fiji. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President under the terms of the 2013 Constitution of Fiji.

Description of the office

As a former British colony, Fiji has largely adopted British political models and follows the Westminster, or Cabinet, system of government, in which the executive branch of government is responsible to the legislature. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President, but must be supported, or at least accepted, by a majority in the House of Representatives. If at any time the Prime Minister loses the "confidence" of the House, he must resign, along with the entire Cabinet. In practice, this usually reduces the Prime Minister's appointment to a formality, as the parliamentary leader of the majority political party or coalition is invariably appointed. If, however, no such majority party or coalition exists, whether due to electoral fragmentation or to party realignments after an election, the President's role becomes much more important. The President must endeavour to find a candidate acceptable to a majority in the House; if no such candidate can be found, the President must dissolve Parliament and call an election prematurely.

The Prime Minister of Fiji is technically the "first among equals," whose vote in meetings of the Cabinet carries no greater weight that that of any other minister. In practice, the Prime Minister dominates the government. Other Ministers are appointed by the President, but on the Prime Minister's advice, and may be dismissed by him at any time (although his control over ministerial appointments may be tempered by the realities of coalition politics: the leader or leaders of coalition partners may insist on having a say in the matter too).

History of the office

Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara was appointed Fiji's first Prime Minister on 10 October 1970, when Fiji attained its independence from Britain. Mara previously served as Fiji's first an only Chief Minister, from 20 September 1967 (while Fiji still was a British colony). Mara's first term as Prime Minister lasted until 13 April 1987. He returned to the office for the second term on 5 December 1987, serving until 2 June 1992. As of 2014, Mara is the longest-serving Prime Minister of Fiji.

List of Prime Ministers of Fiji (1970–present)

№	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term start	Term end	Political Party
Prime Ministers of the Dominion of Fiji
1		Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara (1920–2004)	10 October 1970	13 April 1987	Alliance Party
2		Timoci Bavadra (1934–1989)	13 April 1987	14 May 1987	Fiji Labour Party
Vacant (14 May 1987 – 5 December 1987)
Prime Ministers of the Republic of Fiji
(1)		Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara (1920–2004)	5 December 1987	2 June 1992	Independent
3		Major-General (Rtd) Sitiveni Rabuka (1948–)	2 June 1992	19 May 1999	Fijian Political Party
4		Mahendra Chaudhry (1942–)	19 May 1999	27 May 2000	Fiji Labour Party
5		Ratu Tevita Momoedonu (1941–)	27 May 2000 (several minutes)		Fiji Labour Party
Vacant (27 May 2000 – 4 July 2000)
6		Laisenia Qarase (1941–)	4 July 2000	14 March 2001	Independent
—		Ratu Tevita Momoedonu (1941–) Interim Prime Minister	14 March 2001	16 March 2001	Fiji Labour Party
(6)		Laisenia Qarase (1941–)	16 March 2001	5 December 2006	United Fiji Party
7		Dr. Jona Senilagakali (1929–2011)	5 December 2006	4 January 2007	Independent
8		Commodore Frank Bainimarama (1954–)	5 January 2007	10 April 2009	Military
Vacant (10 April 2009 – 11 April 2009)
(8)		Commodore Frank Bainimarama (1954–)	11 April 2009	31 March 2014	Military
(8)		Rear Admiral (Rtd) Frank Bainimarama (1954–)	31 March 2014	Incumbent	FijiFirst

See also

• List of heads of state of Fiji
• President of Fiji

References

Notes

Footnotes