The country will pay its final respects to former President, Turaga nai Taukei Naisogolaca Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, with the traditional reguregu at Government House from Monday to Wednesday next week.
The funeral church service will be held on Friday at Albert Park, Suva, before his body is transported to Bau Island, before interment at the sautabu (chiefly burial grounds).
Ratu Epeli passed away on March 26 at the age of 84.
He served as President from 2009 to 2015 and Speaker of the House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006 and from 2012 to 2015.
He was a former Commander of the Royal Fiji Military Forces, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Speaker of Parliament and High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
Ratu Epeli was the great-great-grandson of Ratu Seru Epenisa Cakobau and grandson of King George Tupou II of Tonga.
His most courageous work was as a UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador. Ratu Epeli broke taboos by advocating for safe sex in rural villages and championed the HIV/AIDS Act of 2011.
Former A-G Graham Leung recalled in an article published in this newspaper, where Ratu Epeli shocked cocktail receptions by pulling condoms from his pocket to deliver serious messages about safe sex and prevention.
“Some observers may have felt that he was being frivolous, but behind the cheeky humour, he was conveying a serious message about the importance of safe sex,” Mr Leung said.
As Fiji honours him with a state funeral, it remembers a leader born both a lion and a lamb, who proved that true power lies in servitude.
