In the aforementioned roles, he assisted Colonel Pio Wong, who succeeded him in all of these portfolios. Banuve"s first foray into politics was in the 1999 election, in which he unsuccessfully contested the Ra Open Constituency on behalf of the Christian Democratic Alliance (VLV).
After the VLV disintegrated in 2001, in the wake of the coup d"état which deposed the government of Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry in May 2000, Banuve joined the newly formed Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua (SDL) of Laisenia Qarase, and in the election held to restore democracy in September 2001, he won the North West Urban Fijian Communal Constituency for the SDL, and was subsequently appointed to the Cabinet.
