The Grand Chief of the Isle of Pines was enthroned on 14 October. Guillaume Këëwa Vendegou, aged about 50, is retired from the police force. His nomination in February required long months of palaver between the clans of the eight tribes of the Isle of Pines. He was finally appointed Grand Chief last February by the so-called four “key” clans of Kunié, the clans of the Grand Chieftaincy: the Vakoume clan, the Koteureu clan, the Apikaoua clan and the Kaateu clan. Kunié is the vernacular name of the famous Pine Island, the most touristic island of Caledonia.
Guillaume Vendegou succeeds Hilarion Vendegou, who died in January 2020, after more than forty years as the island’s great chief. Hilarion Vendegou had no sons. A part of the population contests this nomination and supports another candidate: Ambroise Meoune Vendegou.