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ʻAisake Eke
ʻAisake Valu Eke is a Tongan politician who has served as prime minister of Tonga since 22 January 2025. He also served in the Cabinet as Minister for Finance and National Planning from 2014 to 2017. Education Eke received a degree in economics during the 1980s at the University of the South Pacific. He undertook his doctorate at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia, where he was awarded a Doctor of Business Administration for his thesis "An exploratory study on the quality of service in the public sector in Tonga" completed in 2013. Member of Parliament A former Secretary for Finance at the Ministry of Finance, he was first elected to the Legislative Assembly at the November 2010 general election as MP for Tongatapu 5. Though close to the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands, and despite having considered running as a party member, he stood as an independent, taking the seat with 24.1% of the vote and a 63-vote margin; Tongatapu 5 was thus the only consti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Honourable
''The Honourable'' (Commonwealth English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific Style (manner of address), style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain people, usually with official governmental or diplomatic positions. Use by governments International diplomacy In international diplomatic relations, representatives of foreign states are often styled as ''The Honourable''. Deputy chiefs of mission, , consuls-general, consuls and honorary consuls are always given the style. All heads of consular posts, whether they are honorary or career postholders, are accorded the style according to the State Department of the United States. However, the style ''Excellency'' instead of ''The Honourable'' is used for ambassadors and high commissioners only. Africa Democratic Republic of the Congo In the Democrati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of The South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the governments of 12 Pacific island countries: the Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. USP is an international centre for teaching and research on Pacific culture and environment, with almost 30,000 students in 2017. The university's main campus is in Suva, Fiji, with subsidiary campuses in each member state. History Discussion of a regional university for the South Pacific began in the early 1950s, when an investigation by the South Pacific Commission recommended the creation of a "central institution" for vocational training in the South Pacific, with a university as a distant goal. In December 1962, the Fijian Legislative Assembly discussed establishing a u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Falisi Tupou
Falisi Tupou is a Tongan journalist and politician. He is a senior editor at '' Keleʻa'', the newspaper of the pro-democracy movement, owned by ʻAkilisi Pohiva. In April 2007, he was arrested and charged with sedition over an editorial in which he was accused of describing the King as ''utukovi'' ("bad brain"). In April 2009, he was co-defendant in a civil defamation case brought by Prime Minister Feleti Sevele Feleti Vakaʻuta Sevele, Lord Sevele of Vailahi (born 7 July 1944) is a Tongan politician who served as the prime minister of Tonga from 30 March 2006 to 22 December 2010. Biography Early life Lord Sevele was born in Maʻufanga, Nukuʻalofa. H ... against the newspaper, which was found liable. In September 2011, he was selected as the candidate of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands to stand in the by-election to the Tongatapu 9 seat in the Legislative Assembly. The seat had been won in the November 2010 general election by DPFI candidate Kaveinga Fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sione Taione
Percy Sione Havea Taione (born September 2, 1971), more commonly known as Sione Taione, is a Tongan politician. He belongs to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and serves as an Elder for the Malapo Church in Tonga. He attended Beulah Primary School and continued to secondary at Beulah College. He continued onto tertiary education and obtained a Diploma in Law from the University of the South Pacific. He began working in the Supreme Court as a translator in 1990 and in 1997 became an interpreter. He became the Supreme Court Registrar in 2005. In all he has been working at the Supreme Court of Tonga for 20 years. He is one of the first qualified mediators in Tonga and is also the legal advisor for the Tongan Public Service Association (PSA) before going into politics. There is only one other qualified mediator in Tonga. His career in national politics began when he was elected People's Representative for the eighth constituency of Tongatapu Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sangster Saulala
Sione Sangster Saulala (born 9 April 1974"Sione Sangster Saulala" , Parliament of Tonga) is a n politician, broadcaster, and . He was a member of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands early in his political career. Personal background He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, Politics and Business Management from the |
Sitiveni Halapua
Sitiveni Halapua (13 February 1949 – 29 January 2023) was a Tongan politician and Member of the Tongan Parliament. He was a deputy leader of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands. Academic career Halapua had a PhD in economics from the University of Kent in England. Between 1981 and 1988 he lectured in economics at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji. He later worked as Director of the Pacific Islands Development Programme at the East-West Center in Hawaii. While working at the East-West Center he developed a conflict-resolution system based on the Polynesian practice of ''Talanoa'', which he has applied in the Cook Islands, Fiji, and Tonga. In November 2005 he was appointed to the National Committee for Political Reform, which aimed at producing a plan for the democratic reform of Tonga. In October 2006 the Commission recommended a fully elected parliament. He subsequently blamed Prime Minister Feleti Sevele's "hijacking" of the report for the 2006 Nuku ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Semisi Sika
Semisi Kioa Lafu Sika (born 31 January 1968) is a Tongan politician, businessman, and Member of the Tongan Parliament from 2010 to 2021. He served as acting prime minister in September 2019, following the death of ʻAkilisi Pōhiva. He is currently leader of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands. Career and activism Sika is from Haveluloto, and was educated at Brigham Young University–Hawaii, gaining a Bachelor of Science. Before entering politics he worked as a teacher and travel agent, and ran a takeaway shop and catering firm. He is a longstanding supporter of the democratic movement in Tonga. In 2007 he was one of three people, including Human Rights and Democracy Movement leader ʻAkilisi Pōhiva, who were prosecuted for their leadership of a protest march in June 2006. He was found not guilty and discharged. Political career A member of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands, Sika was elected to Parliament in the seat of Tongatapu 2 in the 2010 electio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Economy Of Tonga
Tonga's economy is characterized by a large nonmonetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from the half of the country's population that lives abroad, chiefly in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Much of the monetary sector of the economy is dominated, if not owned, by the royal family and nobles. This is particularly true of the telecommunications and satellite services. Much of small business, particularly retailing on Tongatapu, is now dominated by recent Chinese immigrants who arrived under a cash-for-passports scheme that ended in 1998. The manufacturing sector consists of handicrafts and a few other very smallscale industries, all of which contribute only about 3% of GDP. Commercial business activities also are inconspicuous and, to a large extent, are dominated by the same large trading companies found throughout the South Pacific. In September 1974, the country's first commercial trading bank, the Bank of Tonga, opened. Rural Tongans rely on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tongatapu
Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukuʻalofa, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% of the national population, on . Tongatapu is Tonga's centre of government and the seat of its monarchy. Tongatapu has experienced more rapid economic development than the other islands of Tonga, and has thus attracted many internal migrants from them. Geography The island is (or including neighbouring islands) and rather flat, as it is built of coral limestone. The island is covered with thick fertile soil consisting of volcanic ash from neighbouring volcanoes. At the steep coast of the south, heights reach an average of , and maximum , gradually decreasing towards the north. North of the island are many small isolated islands and coral reefs which extend up to from Tongatapu's shores. The almost completely closed Fanga'uta and Fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Independent (politician)
An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have political views that do not align with the platforms of any political party and therefore they choose not to affiliate with them. Some independent politicians may be associated with a party, perhaps as former members of it or else have views that align with it, but choose not to stand in its name, or are unable to do so because the party in question has selected another candidate. Others may belong to or support a political party at the national level but believe they should not formally represent it (and thus be subject to its policies) at another level. In some cases, a politician may be a member of an unregistered party and therefore officially recognised as an independent. Officeholders may become independents after losing or repudiating a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Democratic Party Of The Friendly Islands
The Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands () is a political party in Tonga. The party's leader at its foundation was 'Akilisi Pohiva. The party was launched in September 2010, and included several sitting People's Representatives who were part of the Human Rights and Democracy Movement. Its objectives upon foundation included government transparency and economic reform. The "Friendly Islands" are a name originally given to Tonga by Captain James Cook. 2010 elections The party contested all 17 people's seats in the 2010 elections, winning 12 of them. Following the election, it secured the support of one independent and was seeking the support of two others – 'Aisake Valu Eke and Sunia Fili – by offering them cabinet posts. Following the elections, Niuas MP Sosefo Fe’aomoeata Vakata reportedly quit the party to become an independent and support a noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, Kin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2010 Tongan General Election
Early general elections under a new electoral law were held in Tonga on 25 November 2010. They determined the composition of the 2010 Tongan Legislative Assembly. The early elections were announced by the new King George Tupou V in July 2008 shortly before being crowned on 1 August 2008, and were preceded by a programme of constitutional reform. For the first time, a majority of the seats (17 out of 26) in the Tongan parliament were elected by universal suffrage, with the remaining nine seats being reserved for members of Tonga's nobility. This marked a major progression away from the 165-year rule of the monarchy towards a fully representative democracy. The Taimi Media Network described it as "Tonga’s first democratically elected Parliament". The Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands, founded in September 2010 specifically to fight the election and led by veteran pro-democracy campaigner 'Akilisi Pohiva, secured the largest number of seats, with 12 out of the seventeen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
