Tuʻuʻu Anasiʻi Leota

Tuʻuʻu Anasiʻi Leota is a Samoan politician and former Cabinet Minister. Previously a member of the Human Rights Protection Party, he is now a member of the Faʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST) party.

Tuʻuʻu Anasiʻi Leota
Minister of Revenue
In office
20 February 2004 – 21 March 2011
Prime MinisterTuilaʻepa Saʻilele Malielegaoi
Preceded byGaʻina Tino
Succeeded byTuiloma Pule Lameko
Member of the Samoan Parliament for Siʻumu
Assumed office
24 October 2023
Preceded byVacant
In office
9 April 2021 – 19 July 2023
Preceded byFaalogo Iosefa Sopi
Succeeded byVacant
In office
1996 – 4 March 2016
Preceded byTofaeono Anufesaina
Succeeded byFaalogo Iosefa Sopi
Personal details
Political partyHuman Rights Protection Party
Independent
Faʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi

Leota was an accountant. He worked for the Treasury as Controller Of Stores/Assistant Secretary of Stores before resigning to run for Parliament. He was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Samoa in 1996. In 2004 he was appointed Minister of Revenue in a Cabinet reshuffle following the death of Seumanu Aita Ah Wa.[1][2] He was reappointed after the 2006 election.[3] He ran unsuccessfully for deputy leader of the HRPP after the 2011 election,[4] and was not reappointed to Cabinet.[5]

In June 2013 Leota outraged the Samoan Parliament by using offensive language during a debate.[6] In February 2014 RNZ reported that he was one of three Samoan MPs who had left the ruling HRPP to form a new party after a dispute over abuse of power by Finance Minister Faumuina Tiatia Liuga.[7] Leota claimed that he was still a member of the HRPP,[8] and later claimed the report that he was leaving the HRPP was a joke.[9]

He lost his seat at the 2016 election. He was re-elected in the 2021 election.[10]

On 3 November 2022 Tuʻuʻu and fellow MP Ale Vena Ale resigned from the HRPP to become independents, saying they did not want to remain in a party led by a leader guilty of contempt of court.[11][12] Following a court challenge, their seats were declared vacant on 19 July 2023.[13] He was subsequently endorsed as a FAST candidate in the resulting by-election,[14] in which he was successful. His win, along with FAST victories in the simultaneous by-elections in the Faleata No. 4 and Vaʻa-o-Fonoti constituencies, handed FAST a two-thirds majority in parliament.[15] Tuʻuʻu was sworn back into parliament on 24 October 2023.[16]

References
  1. "Samoa cabinet swears in new minister". RNZ. 20 February 2004. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  2. "TUU'U Anasiʻi Leota". Parliament of Samoa. Archived from the original on 24 August 2007.
  3. "Five new faces in new Samoa cabinet". RNZ. 24 April 2006. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  4. "Samoa's ruling HRPP elects party leader and country's prime minister". RNZ. 16 March 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  5. "Former opposition leader in Samoa joins new ruling party cabinet". RNZ. 21 March 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  6. Vaimoana Tapaleao (26 June 2013). "Outrage at Samoan cabinet minister's 'pusi' jibe". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  7. "Three Samoa MPs leave in HRPP split - report". RNZ. 24 February 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  8. Lagi Keresoma (26 February 2014). "Siumu MP: "I'm still an active HRPP member"". Talamua. Archived from the original on 27 February 2014.
  9. "Samoa MP's 'Joke' About New Party No Laughing Matter: Fonotoe". Pacific Islands Report. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  10. Lanuola Tusani Tupufia - Ah Tong (14 April 2021). "Former Cabinet Minister wins Siumu seat". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
  11. Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (3 November 2022). "Tu'u'u and Ale resign from H.R.P.P." Samoa Observer. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  12. "Samoan opposition MPs quit party to become independents". RNZ. 4 November 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  13. Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (19 July 2023). "MPs Ale, Tuu'u and Mau'u to head to by-election". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  14. Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (21 July 2023). "F.A.S.T. to endorse resigned M.Ps". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  15. Sialai Sarafina Sanerivi (16 September 2023). "F.A.S.T. trio dominate poll results". Samoa Observer. Archived from the original on 18 September 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  16. Lagi Keresoma (24 October 2023). "Three New FAST Members of Parliament Sworn-In". Talamua Online. Apia. Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
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