Josefa Bole Vosanibola is a Fijian politician who served as

Minister for Home Affairs An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergenc ...

from 16 December 2004, when he was appointed by

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 ...

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 ...

to succeed

Joketani Cokanasiga Joketani Cokanasiga ( – 7 March 2021) was a Fijian politician, who served as Minister for Public Works and Energy in the interim Cabinet formed by Laisenia Qarase in the wake of the Fiji coup of 2000. He held office till an elected governm ...

, to 5 December 2006, when his government was deposed in a

military coup 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 ...

. Prior to his appointment as Home Affairs Minister, he had served as Minister for Information, and before that as Minister for Transport and Civil Aviation, following his election to represent the Tailevu North Ovalau Open Constituency, as a candidate of 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 conse ...

'' (SDL), in the

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 ( ...

of 2001. Vosanibola, a devout and outspoken Christian who strongly defended the influence of the church in Fijian society, played a role in the foundation of the Christian Democratic Alliance (VLV) in 1998, and unsuccessfully contested the Tailevu North Ovalau Open Constituency for that party 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 ...

of 1999. In the political realignment that followed the 2000 coup, the VLV splintered and Vosanibola joined the SDL.

Political and constitutional views

On 12 August 2005, Vosanibola backed calls for sovereignty over Fiji to be returned to the chiefs. It was the chiefs who ceded sovereignty to the

British monarchy The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...

in 1874, he said, and it should have been returned to them when Fiji became independent in 1970. The failure to do so was the cause of Fiji's post-independence history of instability, he maintained. ''"Fijians understand that unless their sovereignty is reinstated their status is subject to the maneuvering of politicking,"'' he said. On 22 November 2005, Vosanibola strongly criticized

Opposition Leader The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

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 ...

for his attacks on the Unity Bill. He said that the government was following parliamentary procedures, and that Chaudhry's demands for it to be withdrawn before it had been tabled were both culturally insensitive and "premature." ''"The calls by the Opposition Leader to toss the bill out, before the sectoral committee's report on public submissions are tabled in the House, is uncalled for and premature, to say the least,"'' Vosanibola declared. He went on to say that the government welcomed "constructive criticism" and believed in the need to respect other cultures and beliefs. ''"Peace, reconciliation and unity are sentiments meant not only for the person next door but for all people,"'' he opined.

2006 election

Seeking renomination from the SDL for the

due on 6–13 May 2006, Vosanibola faced a challenge from Eminoni Ranacou, a former agriculture officer. The SDL campaign director,

Jale Baba Jale Baba in Lautoka is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Fo ...

, intervened to ensure that Vosanibola was renominated, over the objections of the local party hierarchy, ''

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 ...

'' reported on 12 April. He went on to retain his seat by a large majority, and kept his Cabinet post in the new government that was formed subsequently.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vosanibola, Josefa I-Taukei Fijian members of the House of Representatives (Fiji) Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Christian Democratic Alliance (Fiji) politicians Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua politicians Government ministers of Fiji Fijian Christians Politicians from Lomaiviti Province