Major General Jioji Konusi Konrote was sworn in as the President of Fiji at a ceremony held in Suva on November 12, 2015.
He became the first Seventh-day Adventist to be appointed to the high office in Fiji.
He was earlier Minister for Employment, Labour Relations and Productivity.
Describing Major General Konrote as “a paragon of loyalty, courage and devotion to duty in his performance as a military commander,” Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama said that he was also noted for honesty and dedication as a senior civil servant and minister, and tact and perseverance as a diplomat.
Special Status
The Presidency of Mr Konrote is special also because he belongs to minority Rotuman ethnicity and his lack of chiefly ancestry. His nomination was in accordance with Fiji’s 2013 constitution, which dispensed with the Council of Chiefs and opened the position of President to all citizens.
President Konrote is the only Fijian to be appointed a Force Commander of the United Nations interim force in Lebanon and a UN Assistant Secretary General. He has served as the Fijian High Commissioner to Australia and Ambassador Plenipotentiary to Singapore. In 2006, he was elected as a member of Parliament and served as a local member and government Minister since that time.
Photo: President Jioji Konusi Konrote
