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 ...

Suliano Matanitobua 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 ...

chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...

, politician, and former member of the

Parliament of Fiji The Parliament of the Republic of Fiji is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Fiji. It consists of 55 members elected every 4 years using open list proportional representation in one multi-member nationwide constituency. History ...

. In 2022 he was imprisoned for corruption. He is a member of the

Social Democratic Liberal Party The Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA) is a Fijian political party. The party was formed in January 2013 after the dissolution of the Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua. The party currently has no party leader. History Party foundation ...

. Matanitobua holds the chiefly title of

Tui Namosi The ''Tui Namosi'' is a chiefly title held by the Paramount Chief of Namosi Province on the main island of Viti Levu Viti Levu (pronounced ) is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji. It is the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home ...

, to which he was installed in 1999, replacing his father, Ratu Saloon Matanitobua. He first participated in the

Great Council of Chiefs The Great Council of Chiefs ''(Bose Levu Vakaturaga'' in Fijian) was a constitutional body in Fiji from 1876 to March 2012. In April 2007, the council was suspended, due to an unworkable relationship with Frank Bainimarama, leader of an "interi ...

in 1989, at the age of 22.Summary of world broadcasts: Asia, Pacific, Issues 3881–3893
(BBC 2000) He was appointed as Associate Minister of Fijian Affairs to the interim

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 ...

formed by

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 ...

in the wake of the

2000 Fijian coup d'état The Fiji coup d'état of 2000 was a civilian coup d'état by hardline i-Taukei (ethnic Fijian) nationalists against the elected government of an Indo-Fijian Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry on 19 May 2000. This was followed by an attempt on ...

. In the 2001

parliamentary 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 ( ...

, Matanitobua won the Namosi 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), taking 85.5 percent of the vote. In the 2006 election, he held the seat by an even larger majority. He was removed from parliament by the

2006 Fijian coup d'état The Fijian coup d'état of December 2006 was a coup d'état carried out by Commodore Frank Bainimarama, Commander of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces, against the government of President Josefa Iloilo. Iloilo was removed as president, but ...

. In 2009 he announced that his district would support the coup regime. Matanitobua was elected as a SOELPA candidate in the

2014 elections The following elections occurred in the year 2014. * 2014 United Nations Security Council election 16 October 2014 Africa * 2014 Algerian presidential election 17 April 2014 * 2014 Botswana general election 24 October 2014 * 2014 Comorian presi ...

, the first since the 2006 coup. During the election campaign he was criticised by the Fijian military for saying that his constituents took precedence over his military uniform. In opposition he served as Shadow Minister for Youth and Sports. He was re-elected in the 2018 election, winning 3,279 votes. On 6 July 2022 he was convicted of providing false information to a public servant and obtaining a pecuniary advantage. He was immediately stripped of his seat in parliament. In August 2022 he was sentenced to three years imprisonment. He was replaced as an MP by Maciu Katamotu.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matanitobua, Suliano Fijian chiefs I-Taukei Fijian members of the House of Representatives (Fiji) Living people Government ministers of Fiji I-Taukei Fijian members of the Parliament of Fiji Social Democratic Liberal Party politicians Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua politicians Politicians from Namosi Province Year of birth missing (living people) Fijian politicians convicted of crimes