Savenaca Draunidalo

Savenaca Uluibau Draunidalo (1950 – 22 December 2007), known sometimes by his chiefly title of '' Ratu,'' was 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 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 ...

from 2001 to 2006, when a military coup ended his ministerial career. He died in a fishing accident on 22 December 2007, when his outboard boat capsized and hit him when he was en route to Naroi to celebrate the 21st birthday of his youngest daughter, Bulou Gavidi Draunidalo. Draunidalo was from the chiefly family of Naroi, Moala, in the

Lau Islands The Lau Islands aka little Tonga (also called the Lau Group, the Eastern Group, the Eastern Archipelago) of Fiji are situated in the southern Pacific Ocean, just east of the Koro Sea. Of this chain of about sixty islands and islets, about thirty a ...

. Draunidalo was a career soldier who rose to the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

and founded the largest battalion in the Fiji Army, the Third Infantry Regiment (3FIR)

He was awarded the Military Cross by Her Majesty the Queen in recognition of his services with the Fiji Infantry Regiment serving in Lebanon as part of the United Nations Peace Keeping Force United Nations Peace Keeping Missions in the Middle East and in Bougainville. Draunidalo also served in the civil service, holding such posts as Deputy Permanent Secretary of Home Affairs and Commissioner Eastern.

In the 2001 Fijian general election, election held in September 2001, Draunidalo, won the Lau Taveuni Rotuma Open Constituency. Though elected as an independent candidate, he was appointed to 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)-dominated Cabinet as Minister for Works and

Energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

. In the parliamentary election held on 6–13 May, he retained his seat with a large majority, and was subsequently appointed Minister for Public Enterprises. Draunidalo was the first husband of the late Adi

Kuini Speed Adi Kuini Teimumu Vuikaba Speed (23 December 1949 – 31 December 2004) was a Fijian chief and politician, who served as Deputy Prime Minister in 1999 and 2000. She was the head girl at Adi Cakobau School in 1968, and went on to graduate from ...

, a

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a chief-based system. This term is used occasionally in anthropological and arch ...

(who held the title of

Tui Noikoro Tui or TUI may refer to: Places * Tui, Pontevedra, Spain * Tui, Iran, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Tui, North Khorasan, North Khorasan Province, Iran * Tui Province, Burkina Faso * Tuis District, Costa Rica * Tui railway station, New Zealand ...

) and Deputy Prime Minister in the

Chaudhry Chowdhury is a title of honour, usually hereditary, originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is an adaption from Sanskrit. During the Mughal rule, it was a title awarded to eminent people, while during British rule, the term was associated ...

government of 1999–2000. They had two children: Tupou Draunidalo, a lawyer and Vice President of the Fiji Law Society, and

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Isireli Draunidalo, a Commissioned Officer of the

Republic of Fiji Military Forces The Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF, formerly the Royal Fiji Military Forces) is the military force of the Pacific island nation of Fiji. With a total manpower of about 4,000 active soldiers and approximately 6,000 reservists, it is one ...

. Draunidalo subsequently married Salesia Mataitoga, with whom he had two daughters - Adi Illeyah and Bulou Gavidi, who were both educated at

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

universities. 1950 births 2007 deaths I-Taukei Fijian members of the House of Representatives (Fiji) Fijian soldiers Public works ministers of Fiji Energy ministers of Fiji Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua politicians Fijian chiefs Politicians from Moala Island {{Fiji-politician-stub