Fofō Iosefa Fiti Sunia (born March 13, 1937) was the first non-voting Delegate from

American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

Early life and career

Fofō Iosefa Fiti Sunia was born March 13, 1937, in Fagasā. He attended the

University of Hawaiʻi The University of Hawaiʻi System is a public college and university system in Hawaii. The system confers associate, bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees through three universities, seven community colleges, an employment training center, ...

and earned a bachelor's degree in economics. Sunia was the administrative officer for the Samoan affairs-liaison functions for the

Governor of American Samoa This is a list of Governor (United States), governors, etc. of the part of the Samoan Islands (now comprising American Samoa) under United States administration since 1900. From 1900 to 1978 governors were appointed by the Federal government o ...

, and served as a translator and interpreter and an election commissioner from 1961 to 1966. He founded the ''Samoan News'' newspaper in 1964 and became director of

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

for the Government of American Samoa in 1966, serving until 1970. Sunia was elected a territorial Senator in 1970 and was a member of the legislature until 1978. He also formerly served as president and chairman of the American Samoan Development Corporation.

Congress

He was elected to Congress in 1980. He served from January 3, 1981 until his resignation on September 6, 1988, after he was indicted on federal charges of running a payroll padding scheme. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five to fifteen months in prison and to pay $65,000 in restitution.

Political views

As a Delegate to the U.S. Congress, Sunia opposed a Constitutional amendment which would have made English the official language of the United States. He argued that English already is the language of the U.S. and the law represented few if any changes to the status quo. He was quoted for saying: "… the 35,000 American Samoans on the island use the

Samoan language Samoan ( or , ) is a Polynesian languages, Polynesian language spoken by Samoans of the Samoan Islands. Administratively, the islands are split between the sovereign country of Samoa and the Unincorporated territories of the United States, Unit ...

in government, in the court, in business and in all facets of daily living, but strive to improve their proficiency in English." He did not believe the proposed amendment would reward "linguistic differences as an asset."

After Congress

He was released from prison after 11 months. His knowledge and experience outweighed his conviction and he was hired to work as a staff member for the American Samoa Fono. By 1993, he was the highest-ranking staffer. As of 2016, he is a resident of

Pago Pago Pago Pago ( or ; Samoan language, Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County, American Samoa, Maoputasi County on Tutuila ...

References

External links