Salutation:
Ni sa bula vinaá, and a very good day to you all.
Today, we gather with gratitude and pride to honour one of Fiji’s greatest sons.
Ratu Sir Josefa Lalabalavu Vanayaliyali Sukuna KCMG KBE was a Fijian chief, scholar, soldier, and statesman. He lived from 22 April 1888 – 30 May 1958. He was the Turaga Nai Talai ni Kovana, as Secretary of Fijian Affairs and Speaker of the Legislative Council from 1956 to 1958 – the year he retired and died. On his traditional chieftain status, he was the Turaga na Tui Lau.
Ratu Sir Lala Sukuna, was accredited as a man of two worlds. He was the bridge between the Fijian’s historical past and the modern world. Almost single-handedly, he was responsible for the formulation of the Fijian Administration, the Native Lands & Fisheries Commission and the Native Lands Trust Board.
He was a visionary leader whose legacy continues to inspire and guide us.
This year’s theme, “Celebrating Visionary Leadership in the North,” allows us to reflect on the qualities that made Ratu Sukuna a revered statesman. More importantly, how we can instil those same values in this and generations to come.
Ratu Sukuna’s greatness did not arise in isolation. He was shaped by the nurturing hands of a family, chiefly heritage, faith, and education. His father, Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi, played a key role in laying the foundation of discipline, service, and leadership in his life.
It is therefore our duty today, as custodians of the Vanua, Lotu kei na Matanitu, to ensure that our children are guided in the same way, taught to serve, to lead with humility, and to act with wisdom and compassion. Might I underscore this point – it is our responsibility to share and guide new generations with what was imparted to us by our past leaders and forebears by our very example. We are the demonstration of the change, of the values, of the leadership and society we seek.
In this light, we shall not wait for leaders to emerge. We must make a deliberate decision and effort to identify and raise them, mentor them and walk with them from their formative years. The strength of tomorrow’s Fiji lies in how we raise our children today.
Ratu Sukuna’s path from the small town of Rakiraki to the prestigious halls of Oxford University proves that education knows no bounds when pursued with determination and discipline. In his story, we see that geography and circumstances should not and must never limit our ambition.
We must continue to invest in the education of our young people, more so in our rural and maritime regions. Every child, no matter where they are born, deserves the opportunity to dream without boundary and the support to achieve it.
Ratu Sukuna was not only a scholar and leader; he was also a strategist. He understood the importance of using our natural resources wisely. He championed agriculture as the backbone of our economy and believed in the potential of commerce to transform lives. Our future is in the very use of our land and sea, in our very own resources. This is the base and springboard from which we rise and stand on our own two feet, and elevated to prominence.
Today, as we look to diversify and strengthen our economy, we must return to those principles. We must return to investing in agriculture, supporting local businesses, and ensuring that economic growth reaches every corner of our islands, especially the North. Let us harness our land and our talent to build a resilient and prosperous future, your future.
As we progress, we must also protect what makes us uniquely Fijian. Ratu Sukuna valued and preserved our culture and traditional knowledge. He understood that the strength of our identity lies in our customs, our language, and our way of life.
We must teach our children the ways of our people, respect, deference, hard work, think of others, of integrity and dignity – na itovo kei na ivakarau, na veidokai, na veiyagani, na gugumatua, kei na vosa dina ni Vanua. Let our culture be the fountain of our uniqueness and our homes, schools, and communities be places where culture is lived and passed on with pride.
5 Commitment and Sacrifice
Ratu Sukuna did not have it his own way as a young man. He was not given things on a platter. His decision for the direction he took in life was deliberate. He knew the costs. Importantly, he understood what the costs were if he didn’t. It was from the pains of his labour – in his early childhood and schools, at the corridors of Oxford, at the battlefield in France, in the valleys, over the hills, across the reefs of our hinterlands and islands throughout Fiji, that inspired and sustained his desire for goodness for his people. He learned the ways of the colonial power; he built into reality a system of policies and laws to protect and transition Fijians into modernity. Material wealth never featured in his personal equation. Pride never ruled his will, but the love for his country and its people did. This was his destiny. He stayed true to it to the very end.
Closing Remarks
As we honour Ratu Sir Lala today, let us not only look back in admiration but look forward with purpose. Let his life remind us that leadership begins with the self, at home. That knowledge and hard work can take us anywhere, that our land can sustain us, and that our culture defines us. Because it is God-given and inspire by Him.
May we continue to raise leaders like Ratu Sukuna, visionary, grounded, and devoted to the land and its people. In Ratu Sukuna’s life we honour the Creator who gave us this land. To Him we give glory for a son of the Land whose life was well lived.
May God bless Fiji
Vina’a va’alevu.