Why did President Ratu Josefa Iloilo abrogate Fiji’s 1997 constitution in 2009?

President Ratu Josefa Iloilo abrogated Fiji’s 1997 constitution in April 2009 as a direct response to a ruling by the Fiji Court of Appeal. The court had declared that the interim government led by Frank Bainimarama—which had been in power since the 2006 coup—was illegal.123

Following this judicial decision, which effectively dissolved the government, Iloilo dismissed the country’s judges, abrogated the constitution, and appointed a new interim government with Bainimarama as prime minister. This action allowed the regime to postpone national elections until 2014, bypassing the legal challenges posed by the court's ruling.123