The Bai Kei Viti was a political party in Fiji

Fiji

Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

.

The party was formed by residents and some chiefs

Ratu

Ratu is a title used by Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, Adi is used by females of chiefly rank.-Etymology:Ra is a prefix in many titles and Tu is simply "chief"...

 of Ba Province to contest the 1999 elections

Fiji election of 1999

General elections were held in Fiji between 8 and 15 May 1999. They were the first election held under the revised Constitution of 1997, which instituted a new electoral system and resulted in Mahendra Chaudhry taking office as Fiji's first Indo-Fijian Prime Minister.-Electoral system:Previously,...

, but failed to win any seats in the House of Representatives

House of Representatives (Fiji)

The House of Representatives is the lower chamber of Fiji's Parliament. It is the more powerful of the two chambers; it alone has the power to initiate legislation...

. Following the coup d'état

Fiji coup of 2000

The Fiji coup of 2000 was a complicated affair involving a civilian putsch by hardline Fijian nationalists against the elected government of a non-native Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry, on 19 May 2000, the attempt by President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara to assert executive authority on 27 May, and...

 which deposed the elected government of Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry

Mahendra Chaudhry

Mahendra Pal Chaudhry is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party...

 in 2000, the BKV contested the election

Fiji election of 2001

The Constitution of Fiji was restored by a High Court decision on 15 November 2000, following the failure of the political upheaval in which the government had been deposed and the constitution suspended in May that year. On 1 March 2001, the Appeal Court upheld the decision. An election to...

 held to restore democracy in 2001. This time, they had former interim Prime Minister Ratu Tevita Momoedonu

Tevita Momoedonu

Ratu Tatu Tevita Momoedonu is a Fijian chief and has served as the fifth Prime Minister of Fiji twice - each time extremely briefly. Both appointments were to get around constitutional technicalities; his first term of office - on 27 May 2000 lasted only a few minutes. His second term - from 14...

 (a defector from the Fiji Labour Party

Fiji Labour Party

The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...

) as their leader, but once again, they won no seats, though they received 2.2 percent of the popular vote.

In 2004 the BKV merged with the Party of National Unity

Party of National Unity (Fiji)

The Party of National Unity is a Fijian political party founded by Ratu Sairusi Nagagavoka in 1998; as of 2006, Nagagavoka is the President of the party. A well-known member of the party was Apisai Tora...

 (PANU), also a Ba-based party, to form the People's National Party

People's National Party (Fiji)

The People's National Party is a former Fijian political party.-Party history:The history of the PNP is representative of the many complex about-turns of Fijian politics: it was formed by a merger of the Party of National Unity and the Protector of Fiji , which were both formally deregistered on...

 (PNP) under the leadership of former Cabinet Minister Meli Bogileka

Meli Bogileka

Meli Bogileka is a Fijian politician. He was the Secretary of the People's National Party up to its decision to merge into the Party of National Unity on 5 March 2006. This merger, an affair complicated by several about-turns, saw Bogileka appointed Secretary of the new PANU...

, and was officially deregistered on 14 August 2005. Bogileka declared that officials from the two parties wanted Ba Province to have a single party to represent their interests at the parliamentary election

Fiji election of 2006

The Constitution of Fiji requires general elections for the House of Representatives to be held at least once every five years. The latest election was held on 6-13 May 2006. Acting President Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi issued a proclamation on 2 March, effective from 27 March, dissolving Parliament...

 scheduled for 2006.

The merger proved complicated, however. PANU spokesman Senator

Senate (Fiji)

The Senate of Fiji is the upper chamber of Parliament. It is the less powerful of the two chambers; it may not initiate legislation, but may amend or veto it. The Senate's powers over financial bills are more restricted: it may veto them in their entirety, but may not amend them...

 Ponipate Lesavua

Ponipate Lesavua

Ponipate Tawase Lesavua is a Fijian politician, who leads the Party of National Unity, which draws most of its support from Ba Province in the West of the country. The former Police officer, who spent 20 years in the Criminal Investigation Department, is an outspoken politician, who has championed...

announced on 11 January 2006 that he had reregistered the defunct party, and on 23 January that the BKV had also seceded from the PNP and had signed an agreement to merge with PANU. On 5 March, the BKV, PANU, and the PNP all decided to resume the merger, but this time under the PANU banner.