Jona Baravilala Senilagakali was a Fijian medical doctor and diplomat who was briefly appointed as Prime Minister of Fiji following the 2006 Fijian coup d'etat.
13 Facts About Jona Senilagakali
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Jona Senilagakali was President of the Fiji Medical Association from 1970 to 1974 and again beginning in 2005.
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Jona Senilagakali was the "public member" of the disciplinary committee of the Fiji Law Society from 1998 to 2006.
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Jona Senilagakali was the president of the Fiji Medical Association, before becoming the medical doctor to the Republic of Fiji Military Forces.
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From 1981 to 1983, Jona Senilagakali served as a counsellor for the Fijian Embassy to Tokyo before becoming Consul General to Los Angeles, a position he held until 1985.
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Jona Senilagakali was appointed prime minister by dictator Frank Bainimarama following the 2006 Fijian coup d'etat.
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Jona Senilagakali acknowledged that the coup was illegal but justified it by claiming that the "illegal activity" of the government of Laisenia Qarase, whom Bainimarama had ousted, was worse.
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Jona Senilagakali said that he had been ordered by Bainimarama to take the position of prime minister and that his appointment had surprised him.
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Jona Senilagakali said new elections could be as long as two years away.
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On his first full day as prime minister, Jona Senilagakali received a hostile reception at the graduation ceremony of the Fiji School of Medicine.
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Jona Senilagakali was dismissed from the latter post a year later, during a Cabinet reshuffle on 4 January 2008.
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Jona Senilagakali told the Fiji Live news service that he had translated the church constitution from English to Fijian all by himself, between 1987 and 1989.
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Jona Senilagakali was the chief steward of the Yarawa Methodist Church, and served on the standing committee of the Methodist conference from 1989 to 2002.