Pita Kewa Nacuva is a

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 ...

an politician, who served as

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

of the

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

from June to December 2006, when a

military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such ...

deposed the government and resulted in the dissolution of Parliament. Previously, he had served in the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

as Minister for Tourism. Nacuva, a former diplomat, was appointed

Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

in the interim government that was formed in July 2000 the wake of the failed Fiji coup of 2000, which deposed the elected government of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier 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. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Mahendra Chaudhry Mahendra Pal Chaudhry ( hif, महेन्द्र पाल चौधरी; born 9 February 1942) is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party. Following a historic election in which he defeated the long-time former lead ...

before being quashed by the

Military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

. In the

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

held to restore democracy in September 2001, he won the Nadroga-Navosa Fijian Communal Constituency for the

Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua The United Fiji Party ( fj, Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua, SDL) was a political party in Fiji. It was founded in 2001 by Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase as a power base; it absorbed most of the Christian Democratic Alliance and other conser ...

(SDL), and was subsequently appointed Minister for Tourism. He has also stood in for

Foreign Minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

Kaliopate Tavola Kaliopate Tavola (born 1946) is a Fijian Agricultural economist, diplomat, and politician, who was his country's Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2000 to 2006. He was also Minister for External Trade and Minister for Sugar. Diplomatic caree ...

in many of Tavola's absences from Fiji. 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 announced on 21 March 2006 that the SDL had decided not to nominate Nacuva for another Parliamentary term. He would therefore retire at the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

to be held on 6–13 May, though he did in fact make a token bid for another constituency, mainly to raise his party's profile. Following the election, he was elected unopposed on 5 June to succeed

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 re ...

Epeli Nailatikau Brigadier-General Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, (born 5 July 1941) (often referred to as ''Na Turaga Mai Naisogolaca'') is a Fijian chief who was President of Fiji from 2009 to 2015. He has had a long career in the Military, diplomatic service, and go ...

Parliamentary Speaker The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerfo ...

, a position from which incumbent members were

constitutionally A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princip ...

barred. Pita Kewa Nacuva is a former student of

Lelean Memorial School Lelean Memorial School is one of the largest co-ed schools in Fiji. It was established in 1943 and is run by the Methodist Church of Fiji and Rotuma. It is co-located at the Davuilevu Methodist Compound with thDavuilevu Theological Collegeand the ...

, a former Captain of the Lelean Old Boys Rugby Club and the Fiji national rugby side. He is a keen tennis player as well.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) People educated at Lelean Memorial School Living people Speakers of the House of Representatives (Fiji) Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua politicians Health ministers of Fiji Tourism ministers of Fiji Fijian diplomats I-Taukei Fijian members of the House of Representatives (Fiji) Politicians from Nadroga-Navosa Province {{Fiji-politician-stub