‘Akosita Havili Lavulavu MLA | |
|---|---|
| Minister for Infrastructure and Tourism | |
| Assumed office 10 October 2019 | |
| Prime Minister | Pohiva Tuʻiʻonetoa |
| Preceded by | Semisi Sika |
| Minister for Internal Affairs, Women, Culture, Youth and Sports | |
| In office 18 January 2018 –11 April 2018 | |
| Prime Minister | ʻAkilisi Pōhiva |
| Preceded by | Fe'ao Vakata |
| Succeeded by | Losaline Ma'asi |
| Member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga for Vavaʻu 16 | |
| Assumed office 16 July 2016 | |
| Preceded by | ‘Etuate Lavulavu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1985 |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse(s) | ‘Etuate Lavulavu |
| Alma mater | Brigham Young University–Hawaii University of the South Pacific |
‘Akosita Havili Lavulavu (born 1985) is a Tongan politician and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga for Vavaʻu 16.
Lavulavu is the wife of former MP ‘Etuate Lavulavu. She was educated at Tonga High School, with tertiary study at Brigham Young University–Hawaii, earning a Bachelor in Information System, and the University of the South Pacific, earning an MBA. [1]
Before entering politics she was the director of the Unuaki 'o Tonga Royal Institute. [2] Following her husband's conviction for bribery in 2016 [3] she stood in the resulting by-election and was elected, becoming the 5th female MP in Tonga's history. [2] [4] She was re-elected at the 2017 general election, [5] after which she was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs and Sports. [6]
On 3 March 2018 Lavulavu and her husband were both arrested on fraud charges stemming from their management of the ‘Unuaki ‘o Tonga Royal Institute in 2016. [7] She was subsequently sacked from her Ministerial position. [8]
While still awaiting trial, [9] in October 2019 she was appointed Minister for Infrastructure and Tourism in the cabinet of Pohiva Tuʻiʻonetoa. [10]
The history of Tonga is recorded since the century after 900 BC, when seafarers associated with the Lapita diaspora first settled the islands which now make up the Kingdom of Tonga. Along with Fiji and Samoa, the area served as a gateway into the rest of the Pacific region known as Polynesia. Ancient Tongan mythologies recorded by early European explorers report the islands of 'Ata and Tongatapu as the first islands having been hauled to the surface from the deep ocean by Maui.
The 2006 Nukuʻalofa riots, also known as the Tongan riots, started on 16 November, in the Tongan capital of Nukuʻalofa. The Legislative Assembly of Tonga was due to adjourn for the year and despite promises of action, had done little to advance democracy in the government. A mixed crowd of democracy advocates took to the streets in protest. The riots saw a number of cases of robbery, looting, vehicle theft, arson and various property damage.
Samiuela ʻAkilisi Pōhiva was a Tongan pro-democracy activist and politician. Pohiva, the leader of the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands (DPFI), served as the Prime Minister of Tonga from 2014 to his death in 2019. He was only the fourth commoner to serve as Prime Minister, and the first commoner to be elected to that position by Parliament rather than appointed by the King. On 25 August 2017, he was dismissed by the King along with the rest of parliament with fresh elections to be held on 16 November, in which his party won with enough seats to form a government.
The Cabinet of Tonga is the cabinet of the government of the Kingdom of Tonga. It is composed primarily of the ministers of government. The latter, including the Prime Minister, are appointed by the monarch. The Governor of Ha'apai and the Governor of Vava'u also serve on the Cabinet ex officio. When in session and presided over by the monarch, the Cabinet is known as the Privy Council.
William Clive Edwards OBE is a Tongan barrister and politician who formerly served as a Cabinet Minister and Acting Deputy Prime Minister. He is a member of the People's Democratic Party.
ʻUliti Uata is a Tongan politician. He is a member of the Human Rights and Democracy Movement and the Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands.
Samiu Kuita Vaipulu is a Tongan politician and Cabinet Minister. He was the Tongan Deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2014 and is currently Minister for Trade and Economic Development.
‘Etuate Lavulavu is a Tongan politician and former member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga for Vavaʻu. He was stripped of his seat in 2016 after being convicted of bribery, precipitating the 2016 Vavaʻu 16 by-election.
Siale ʻAtaongo Kaho, Lord Tuʻivakanō is a Tongan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Tonga from 2010 to 2014.
Siosaʻia Lausiʻi, but since his installation on 30 Oct 1997 with the noble title 10th Maʻafu, better known as Lord Maʻafu, is a Tongan politician, former military officer, and member of the Tongan nobility.
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Vavaʻu 14 is an electoral constituency for the Legislative Assembly in the Kingdom of Tonga. It was established for the November 2010 general election, when the multi-seat regional constituencies for People's Representatives were replaced by single-seat constituencies, electing one representative via the first past the post electoral system. Located in the Vavaʻu island group, it encompasses the villages of Pangaimotu, ‘Utulei, ‘Utungake, Talihau, Taoa, Vaimalo, Tefisi, Tu'anuku, Longomapu, Taunga, Kapa, ‘Otea, Falevai, Matamaka, Nuapapu, Lape, Ovaka, Hunga, Holeva, Koloa, Olo'ua, Ofu, and Okoa. It is one of three constituencies in Vavaʻu.
General elections were held in Tonga on 27 November 2014. All twenty-six elected seats in the single-chamber Legislative Assembly were up for election, although the monarch, acting on the advice of his Prime Minister, retains the possibility to appoint members to Cabinet from outside Parliament, thus granting them a non-elected ex officio seat in Parliament.
Mateni Tapueluelu is a Tongan journalist and politician.
A by-election was held in the Vavaʻu 16 constituency in Tonga on 14 July 2016. It followed the conviction and unseating of MP ‘Etuate Lavulavu for bribery and campaign overspending, in January.
General elections were held in Tonga on 16 November 2017 to elect 17 of the 26 seats to the Legislative Assembly. King Tupou VI dissolved the Assembly on 25 August 2017 on the advice of its Speaker, Sialeʻataongo Tuʻivakanō, who claimed that Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pohiva was attempting to claim powers held by the King and Privy Council within Cabinet.
Losaline Ma'asi is a Tongan politician, Cabinet Minister, and a member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga for Tongatapu 5.

Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa is a Tongan accountant and politician serving as the 16th and current prime minister of Tonga since 2019. Tu'i'onetoa succeeded Semisi Sika, who had served as acting prime minister, since the death of ʻAkilisi Pōhiva.
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