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Hon. James Cecil Cocker - Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism & Minister of
Environment:
Hon. James Cecil Cocker has been with the House
for a period of 10 consecutive years after coming back from retirement in
1994, and throughout the time as had a variety of portfolios at one time or
another. He has been the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Works &
Disasters Relief Activities, the Minister of Marines, the Minister of Police
and the Minister of Labour & Commerce.
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Hon. Dr. Viliami Tangi - Minister of Health
Hon.
Dr. Viliami Tangi was the Chief Surgeon in Viola Hospital, Nuku'alofa, Tonga
for many years before finally deciding to find employment opportunities in
Australia. His return to Tonga was motivated by his appointment by His
Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV as the Minister of Health. He is a
well-renown surgeon in the pacific region and is considered as expert
specialist in his field. |
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Hon.
Siosiua ‘Utoikamanu - Minister of Finance
Hon.
Sosiua 'Utoikamanu was appointed the Minister of Finance in 2001. He
has been the Governor of the National Reserve Bank of Tonga since 1991.
Amongst his many post prior to been the Governor, he was in 1989 - Acting
Finance Manager at the Tonga Commodities Board, in 1987 - Acting Director of
Planning at the Central Planning Department and in 1984 - Deputy Secretary
at the Ministry of Finance. Hon. Sosiua 'Utoikamanu holds a Masters of
Social Science in Development Finance from the University of Birmingham at
the United Kingdom, a Masters of Commerce and Administration (MCA) with
Honours, from the Wellington University of Victoria in New Zealand.
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Hon. Fielakepa- Minister of Lands, Survey & Natural Resources
Hon.
Fielakepa was appointed in 2001 to be the Minister of Lands, Survey &
Natural Resources. He is a Lawyer by profession and was the interim
Attorney General and Minister of Justice in 2004. His previous posts
before been appointed a Minister included been the Governor of Ha'apai, the
Private Secretary to His Majesty in 1997 and Deputy Secretary in the
Ministry of Justice 1991-1996. Hon.
Fielakepa holds a Masters in Laws (LL.M with distinction) from the United
Nation International Law Institute in Malta and a certificate in Diplomatic
Studies from the University of Oxford. He is both a member of both the
Tongan and New Zealand BAR Association.
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Hon. Tuita - Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
Hon.
Tuita was appointed the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries in 2002.
He was prior to his appointment, the Governor of Vava'u from 1998 to 2001,
the Tonga Consul General to the USA from 1992 to 1997, the Tonga High
Commissioner to the UK from 1989 to 1991, the Chief of Protocol/Deputy
Secretary for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1986 to 1988, the
Counselor for the Tonga High Commission to the UK from 1980 to 1985, and was
the First Secretary of the Tonga High Commission to the UK in 1979.
Hon. Tu'ita was educated at the University of Auckland, NZ and Oxford
University, U.K. He is married to HRH Princess Salote Mafile'o
Pilolevu Tuku'aho. He is the 9th person to hold the noble title of
"Tu'ita".
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Hon. Sonatane
Tu'akinamolahi Taumoepeau-Tupou - Minister of Foreign Affairs
Hon. Taumoepeau-Tupou
was appointed the Minister of Foreign Affairs in August 2004 as part of
the governments reform policies. He took the portfolio vacated by the Prime
Minister Prince ‘Ulukalala Lavaka Ata, who had been Minister of Foreign
Affairs since 1998. He was also appointed in April 2005 the Acting
Minister of Defence following the sudden death of Hon. Fetu'utulu 'Aloua
Tupou. Before his ministerial appointments Hon. Taumoepeau-Tupou was
Tonga's first permanent representative to the United Nations, Ambassador to
the United States of America, Mexico, Chile, the Republic of Cuba, and
concurrently accredited as High Commissioner to Canada. During his
time in the civil service he has as served at the Tonga High Commission in
London, the Prime Minister's Office in Nuku'alofa, the Tonga Defence
Services, and the Palace Office. He was the first Secretary for Foreign
Affairs in 1979.
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Hon. Siaosi Taimani 'Aho - Minister of Justice & Attorney General
Hon.
Siaosi 'Aho is a long-serving public servant who has been with the public
service for some 30 years. He was appointed the Minister of Justice
and Attorney General in 2004 and took over from the Hon. 'Aisea Taumoepeau.
Before his appointment, he was the Commissioner of Public Relations, a post
he took up in 2002. Prior to that he was the Secretary of Justice for
many years and has a wealth of experience in dealing with all kinds of legal
work.
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Hon. Tevita Hala Palefau - Minister of Education
Hon. Dr Tevita Hala
Palefau was appointed a Minister on the 21st January 2005 to take over from
the retired Hon. Paula Bloomfield who had been the interim Minister of
Education since January 2002. Dr. Palefau has a PhD from the
University of Toronto, Canada. He began his career in Education in
1979 as an assistant teacher at the Mailefihi Siu'ilikutapu College in
Vava'u. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1985 from the
University of the South Pacific and holds a Masters in Science degree from
the University of Technology in Australia. Dr Palefau was the
Principal of the Taufa'ahau Pilolevu College in Ha'apai from 1996 -97, and
the Principal of Tupou College from 1997 to 2000. He was ordained as a
Reverend of the Methodist Church of Tonga in 1998.
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Hon. Tu'ivakano - Minister of Works & Disasters Relief Activities
Hon.
Tu’ivakano was appointed a Minister in March 2005 after the elections but has
been a member of the Legislative Assembly since 1996 as a Representative of
the Nobles of Tonga. His appointment was due to the new constitutional
arrangement extended by His Majesty whereby 2 Ministers would be appointed
from the people's and noble's representatives respectively. Before his
appointment, he was the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and Tongatapu's
Nobles No.1 Representative. He was appointed Speaker by His Majesty
on 1st July 2002 and is one of the most experienced members of the
Legislative Assembly. As the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of
Tonga (from 2002-2004), Hon. Tu’ivakano bought about many reforms to the Legislative
Assembly, including revising and updating the Standing Orders of the House,
restructuring the office of the Legislative Assembly and bringing about
reforms to the parliamentarian pensions scheme to align with other
Commonwealth countries. |
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Hon. Nuku - Minister of Police, Fire & Prisons
Hon. Nuku was the Nobles' Representative for 'Eua
for 13 consecutive years before been appointed the Minister of Police in
March 2005 as part of the new constitutional arrangements proposed by the
Prime Minister HRH 'Ulukalala Lavaka 'Ata.
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Hon. Dr. Feleti Sevele - Minister of Labour, Commerce & Industries
Hon.
Dr. Feleti Sevele was elected in March 2005 for his 3rd term in the House.
His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV then appointed him as the new Minister
of Labour, Commerce and Industries on the 21st of March, in line with the
new constitutional policy whereby 4 Cabinet Ministers are appointed from
elected members. He holds a Ph.d in economics and is one of the most
prominent scholar, politician and businessman in Tonga. Furthermore,
In April 2005, he was appointed by HRH Crown Prince Tupouto'a as Tonga's
Acting Prime Minister, only a month after he entered Cabinet following the
March General Election. He was also the chairman of the Privatization
Committee for Fua'amotu Airport, widely hailed as a popular and wise move.
He is a strong advocate of more democratic ideals in Tonga and is a member
of the Peoples Pro-Democracy Movement. |
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Hon. Sione Peauafi Haukinima - Minister of Forestry
Like
the Hon. Feleti Sevele, Hon. Peauafi Haukinima was appointed by His Majesty
King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV in March 2005 as the new Minister of Forestry,
following the the new constitutional arrangements whereby 4 ministers would
be appointed from elected members of the House. Hon. Haukinima was
before his appointment the Peoples' Representative for the Niuas, 2 remote
islands to the north of Tongatapu. Having worked in the civil service
for many years before running for parliament and holding a diploma in
forestry, he was the perfect candidate for this portfolio. He is
currently serving his 3rd term in the House. |
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Hon. Malupo - Governor of Ha'apai
Hon.
Malupo was appointed the Govenor of Ha'apai in January 2001. However,
he began his political career in 1993 after being elected the Noble
Representative for Ha'apai. Furthermore, he was appointed Chairman of
the Standing Committee on Legislation and was an executive member to the
Asia Pacific Parliament Association in 1999. He was also the Acting
Speaker of the Legislative Assembly in 2000.
Hon. Malupo was educated at West High School in Salt Lake City, USA
from 1969-70 and the UTAH Business School from 1971-73.
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Hon. 'Akauola -
Governor of Vava'u
Hon. 'Akauola was appointed the Governor of
Vava'u in 2002 by His Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV after a distinguished
career in the civil service, which amongst his many governmental posts, he
was the Secretary to the Ministry of Fisheries and the High Commissioner to
the United Kingdom.
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