Jioji Kotobalavu was

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), 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 ...

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

. He was the Chief Executive Officer in the Prime Minister's office, (CEO PMO) but was dismissed on 7 December 2006 by the

military junta A military junta () is a government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the national and local junta organized by the Spanish resistance to Napoleon's invasion of Spain in ...

which had seized power on 5 December. He received his formal notice of dismissal on 13 December. Kotobalavu was a career civil servant who once served as Fiji's

ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

in the late 1970s. He left the Civil Service briefly to head SOPA
South Pacific Geoscience Commission
As part of his duties in managing the operations of the Prime Minister's office, he was required to make statements on policy matters. Since public policy is often put under the spot light of public scrutiny, the CEO PMO was regularly required to make statements to defend or clarify government's stand on certain policies. Kotobalavu's outspokenness occasionally caused trouble for him. On 23 September 2005, he was made to apologise to the High Court for making statements defending the Prime Minister

Laisenia Qarase Laisenia Qarase (pronounced ; 4 February 1941 – 21 April 2020) was a Fijian politician. He served as the sixth Prime Minister of Fiji from 2000 to 2006. After the military quashed the coup that led to the removal of Mahendra Chaudhry, Qarase ...

, against allegations of involvement in a Ministry of Agriculture scandal, in which more than F$30 million was allegedly misappropriated. Justice

Nazhat Shameem Nazhat Shameem Khan (born 1960) is a Fijian diplomat and former judge who served as the Permanent Representative of Fiji to the United Nations from 2014 to 2022. She was also the President of the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2021. S ...

ruled Kotobalavu's comments to be in

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...

and ordered him to apologise and to refrain from making any further statements until after the trial. The Police investigations eventually cleared Prime Minister

of any involvement in the Agricultural scam. On 22 October 2006,

Fiji Live ''Fijilive'' is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder. ''Fijilive'' is one of Fiji's largest websites. The site rose to ...

quoted Kotobalavu as denying that he had applied for the position of Secretary-General of the Secretariat of the

Pacific Islands Forum The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) is an inter-governmental organization that aims to enhance cooperation between countries and territories of Oceania, including formation of a trade bloc and regional peacekeeping operations. It was founded in 197 ...

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The

Melanesian Spearhead Group The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) is an intergovernmental organization, composed of the four Melanesian states of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, and the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front of New Caledonia. In ...

had reportedly nominated him for the post, but he denied this. Reacting to his dismissal, Kotobalavu told

on 13 December that it would give him more time to study

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. He was later employed as a consultant for office of the

Prime Minister of Samoa The prime minister of the Independent State of Samoa ( sm, Palemia o le Malo Tuto’atasi o Sāmoa) is the head of government of Samoa. The prime minister is a member of the Legislative Assembly, and is appointed by the O le Ao o le Malo (Hea ...

. Kotobalavu was educated at Lelean Memorial and

Queen Victoria School Queen Victoria School (QVS) is a non-selective, co-educational, boarding school predominantly for children of Scottish Servicemen/women (but see full admissions criteria, below) aged 10/11 to 18. It occupies a Scottish Baronial-style building on ...

s. He graduated with an MA from the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

and a Diploma of Diplomacy from

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

References

Fiji's Most Powerful and Wealthiest Public Servant, by Samisoni Pareti, Islands Business feature article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kotobalavu, Joji Fijian civil servants People from Lau Province Year of birth missing (living people) Living people People educated at Lelean Memorial School Alumni of the University of Oxford Ambassadors of Fiji to Japan I-Taukei Fijian people Fijian expatriates in Samoa University of Auckland alumni People educated at Queen Victoria School (Fiji)