Fineasi Funaki (1966 – 13 November 2010) was a

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

n politician and

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

Minister. He was a member of the

Human Rights and Democracy Movement The Human Rights and Democracy Movement (HRDM) is a political party in Tonga. Its leader is Uliti Uata. The HRDM was founded in the late 1970s as an informal group of Tongans interested in democratic reform. It was formalised in 1992 as the Pro ...

. Funaki was educated at

Tonga College Tonga College is a Tongan secondary school, founded by the Tongan government in 1882. Its origination was a joint effort between King George Tupou I and Reverend Shirley Waldemar Baker who also both formed the Free Church of Tonga in 1885. The sch ...

and the Tongan teachers' training college, before studying at

Brigham Young University–Hawaii Brigham Young University–Hawaii (BYU–Hawaii) is a private university in Laie, Hawaii. It is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). BYU-Hawaii was founded in 1955, and became a satellite campus of ...

. He was elected People's Representative for Ha'apai at the 2005 election. He was appointed Minister of Tourism in May 2006, and was reappointed after the 2008 election. In January 2008 he was accused of corruption after depositing a cheque from the Chinese Embassy to the Ministry into his personal bank account. A subsequent report from the Auditor-General found that he had broken the law by depositing a cheque from the Chinese Embassy into his personal bank account and recommended that he be asked to resign. Prime Minister

Feleti Sevele Feleti Vakaʻuta Sevele, Lord Sevele of Vailahi (born 7 July 1944) was the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga from 30 March 2006 to 22 December 2010. Biography Early life Lord Sevele was born in Ma’ufanga, Nuku’alofa. He began his hig ...

refused the recommendation of asking for Funaki's resignation, blaming the misappropriation of funds on inexperience, but Funaki forfeited his salary for three months and was forced to apologise. Funaki resigned from Cabinet in September 2010 due to ill-health. He died in

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...

while undergoing treatment later that year.

Honours

;National honours * The_Most_Illustrious_Order_of_Queen_Salote_Tupou_III_Member

Order of Queen Sālote Tupou III The ''Most Illustrious'' Order of Queen Sālote Tupou III is a knighthood order of the Kingdom of Tonga. History The Order was established on 28 June 2008 by His Late Majesty King George Tupou V to commemorate the grand figure of his grandmot ...

, Grand Cross (31 July 2008).

References

Members of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga Brigham Young University–Hawaii alumni Human Rights and Democracy Movement politicians 1966 births 2010 deaths Government ministers of Tonga People from Haʻapai Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Queen Sālote Tupou III {{Tonga-politician-stub