The Bose Levu Vakaturaga (BLV) would be given the power to appoint Fiji’s President and a newly established Vice-President under the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2026.
Section 101 proposes the re-establishment of the office of Vice-President, who would serve as Fiji’s deputy head of state.
Under section 103, both the President and Vice-President would be appointed by the BLV after consultation with the Prime Minister.
The Bill proposes four-year terms for both offices, with each office-holder eligible for reappointment for one further four-year term, limiting them to two terms.
Any period already served as President before the commencement of the proposed Constitution would be taken into account when determining eligibility for appointment or reappointment.
Candidates for either office would need to be Fiji citizens who have had a “distinguished career” in national or international life in either the public or private sector.
They could not be members of a political party or candidates for election to another state office.
A person would also be disqualified if under sentence, or liable to be sentenced, for an offence punishable by imprisonment of 12 months or more.
If a serving public office-holder is appointed President or Vice-President, their existing public service appointment would automatically end.
The provisions would give the BLV a direct constitutional role in selecting Fiji’s two highest state offices.
