GOVERNOR Juan N. Babauta will host a luncheon meeting today in honor of visiting Fiji President Josefa Iloilo.
Babauta, according to Special Assistant for Regional Affairs Frank Rosario, will receive the president and his party at 10:00 a.m. at his office on Capitol Hill today.
Babauta, who flew to Tinian yesterday, was not able to welcome the president and the first lady upon their arrival on the island also yesterday.
“They’re scheduled to meet today. The president will be welcomed by the governor in his office,” Rosario said.
The president and his delegation will also tour the Legislature after meeting Babauta.
“This is a day for government officials. The president will be meeting with CNMI government officials,” Rosario said.
Rosario said the Office of the Governor is grateful to welcome Iloilo, the first Fiji president to visit the CNMI.
“We understand that it’s a private visit, but we’re grateful that he took time to visit Saipan. He’s the very first Fiji president to have visited us,” Rosario said.
Babauta’s office provides transportation and police security to the president during his five-day stay on Saipan, Rosario said.
Iloilo, 83, is a former senator and a long-time educator.
Under his leadership, Fiji, which suffered a severe national crisis following the May 2000 military coup, has recovered economically and socially.
“He’s a good leader. He’s humble and reaches out to different groups. When he assumed the presidency, the first thing he did was to go back to the people to promote unity, cooperation and reconciliation,” Fiji’s permanent secretary Nacanieli C. Goneyali said.
Goneyali, who is a physician, said that despite the president’s age, “he remains committed to serve the people.”
Iloilo met with the Fijian community on Saipan at Pacific Islands Club, Tuesday evening.
The president came to Saipan to attend two major gatherings—a leaders’ meeting on Friday morning at Dai-Ichi Hotel and the 3rd Annual National Day of Prayer on Friday evening at Hopwood Junior High School.
The president and his party will leave Saipan this weekend on a Continental flight to Guam.
From Guam, the president will fly back to Fiji through Japan.
