Sir Frank Utu Ofagioro Kabui,

GCMG The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

, CSI, OBE

KStJ The Order of St John, short for Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem (french: l'ordre très vénérable de l'Hôpital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem) and also known as St John International, is a British royal order of ...

(born 20 April 1946) was the

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy ...

of the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

from 7 July 2009 to 7 July 2019. He is also a trained judge, having been his country's first law graduate in 1975, and is a former member of the Solomon Islands Bar Association (SIBA), having twice served as its president.

Career

Legal career

Kabui was born on 20 April 1946. He is a former High Court judge and Attorney General. He was twice elected President of the Solomon Islands Bar Association, the second time in 2007 to succeed Ranjit Hewagama. Whereas David Campbell was the Solomon Islands' first local lawyer, Kabui was the country's first law graduate upon completing his studies at the

University of Papua New Guinea The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) is a university located in Port Moresby, capital of Papua New Guinea. It was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired ...

in 1975. Kabui also served as Chairman of the Law Reform Commission.

Political career

2009 nomination

Kabui was nominated by the

National Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

to become

after the fourth round with thirty votes. The Chairman of the Public Service Commission, Edmund Andresen, received eight votes while Kabui's predecessor, Nathaniel Waena, received seven. Three members were not present. The list of candidates also included former

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 i ...

and current Speaker of Parliament

Peter Kenilorea Sir Peter Kenilorea KBE (23 May 1943 – 24 February 2016) was a Solomon Islander politician, officially styled The Rt Hon. Sir Peter Kenilorea as a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. He was the first Prime Minister of an indepe ...

and five other candidates. Following the completion of this nomination process in Parliament, the formal appointment as Governor-General was then issued by

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

Queen of Solomon Islands The monarchy of Solomon Islands is a system of government in which a constitutional monarch is the head of state of Solomon Islands. The present monarch and head of state, since 8 September 2022, is King Charles III, who is also the head of st ...

. His election came as the country celebrated thirty-one years of independence. Kabui attended a ceremony at the

Lawson Tama Stadium Lawson Tama Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Honiara, Solomon Islands. It is currently used mostly for association football, football matches. The stadium is unique as the stand is built into the hillside so there is no official capacity but ...

on 7 July 2009, where several thousand people saw him take his oath. He inspected a guard of honour by the Royal Solomon Islands Police and received the royal salute during a parade. On 8 July 2009 in Honiara, Kabui presented an award to athlete Jim Marau, who was Solomon Islands first

South Pacific Games The Pacific Games (French: Jeux du Pacifique), is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from Oceania. The inaugural Games took place in 1963 in Suva, Fiji, and most recently in 2019 in Apia, Samoa. The Games wer ...

gold medallist, achieving this feat in 1975. Marau was awarded during the Independence Celebration in Lawson Tama. On 9 October 2009, Kabui was appointed a

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

.Honours and Awards
''The Gazette'', London, 9 October 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kabui, Frank 1946 births Governors-General of Solomon Islands Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Living people Officers of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Solomon Islands lawyers Solomon Islands judges University of Papua New Guinea alumni