RATU Epeli Nailatikau will be sworn in today as President in place of Ratu Josefa Iloilo who resigned in September.
Ratu Epeli is a chief from the Naisogolaca household on Bau Island and is married to Adi Koila, daughter of former president and prime minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara.
Ratu Epeli rose through the ranks of the military to become commander.
In 1979, he commanded the 1st Battalion, Fiji Infantry Regiment (1FIR) when it joined the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon.
He was removed from the position when Lieutenant-Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka overthrew Dr Timoci Bavadra's Labour Coalition government in 1987.
Ratu Epeli was Fiji's ambassador to the Court of St James. On his return, he held several posts in the Foreign Service before becoming Speaker of the House and a special United Nations ambassador for HIV-AIDS. He held a number of Cabinet portfolios in various governments.
Educated at Draiba Fijian, Levuka Public and Queen Victoria School, Ratu Epeli joined the army and served in Malaysia on secondment to the New Zealand Defence Force during confrontations with Indonesia in the 1960s.
He is the second eldest son of the late Ratu Sir Edward Cakobau, who commanded the Fiji Battalion in the Solomons in World War II and became deputy prime minister in Ratu Mara's government.
Ratu Sir Edward was the eldest son of George IV of Tonga, grandfather of the current king, George Tupou II. His mother was Adi Litia Cakobau, daughter of Ratu Timoci Tavanavanua of the Vunivalu mataqali of Bau.
First President of Fiji: Ratu Sir Penaia Kanatabatu Ganilau (1987- 1993)
Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara (1993-2000)
Ratu Josefa Iloilo (2000-2009)
