Va'ai Papu Vailupe
Encyclopedia
Va'ai Papu Vailupe is a Samoa
n politician and Member of Parliament. He is the leader of the Tautua Samoa Party
.
Va'ai was first elected to the Samoan Legislative Assembly at the 1991 election
. After being re-elected in 1996
, he served as Parliamentary Undersecretary for Works, EPC, and the Water Authority, before being appointed to Cabinet as Minister of Justice Between 1998 and 2001, he served as Minister of Agriculture. Since 2006 he has been a backbench MP.
In December 2008 he became a founding member of the Tautua Samoa Party
. As a result, in May 2009 he was one of nine Tautua MPs declared to have resigned their seats under an anti-party hopping law. He was subsequently reinstated after the Supreme Court of Samoa overturned the law and declared the formation of new parties legal.
In January 2010 new anti-party-hopping laws came into force, barring MPs from declaring their support for political parties or organizations with political aims other than the party they were elected for. In March 2010, he joined Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi
and Palusalue Fa’apo II
in formally declaring his membership of the party and so was deemed to have resigned his seat. However, the HRPP was unable to find a candidate for the resulting by-election
, and on 2 May 2010 he was declared elected unopposed, becoming the first non-HRPP MP to win a by-election.
Vailupe won his seat in the 2011 election
, but the result was overturned by an electoral petition, which found him guilty of bribery and treating.
Vailupe is the son of former Prime Minister Va'ai Kolone
and the brother of Samoan Democratic United Party
leader Asiata Sale'imoa Va'ai.
Samoa
Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...
n politician and Member of Parliament. He is the leader of the Tautua Samoa Party
Tautua Samoa Party
Tautua Samoa is a political party in Samoa. The party's policies include economic development, particularly in the agricultural sector, public service reform, a limit on the number of Associate Ministers, and a reduction in the term of Parliament from 5 to 3 or 4 years...
.
Va'ai was first elected to the Samoan Legislative Assembly at the 1991 election
Samoan general election, 1991
General elections were held in Samoa on 5 April 1991. Following a referendum the previous year, they were the first under universal suffrage, although candidates still had to be members of the Matai. The result was a victory for the Human Rights Protection Party, which won 27 of the 47...
. After being re-elected in 1996
Samoan general election, 1996
General elections were held in Samoa on 26 April 1996. The result was a victory for the Human Rights Protection Party, which won 24 of the 49 seats. The Samoan National Development Party won 11 seats, the Samoa Liberal Party 1, and independents 13. Following the elections, the 12th Samoan...
, he served as Parliamentary Undersecretary for Works, EPC, and the Water Authority, before being appointed to Cabinet as Minister of Justice Between 1998 and 2001, he served as Minister of Agriculture. Since 2006 he has been a backbench MP.
In December 2008 he became a founding member of the Tautua Samoa Party
Tautua Samoa Party
Tautua Samoa is a political party in Samoa. The party's policies include economic development, particularly in the agricultural sector, public service reform, a limit on the number of Associate Ministers, and a reduction in the term of Parliament from 5 to 3 or 4 years...
. As a result, in May 2009 he was one of nine Tautua MPs declared to have resigned their seats under an anti-party hopping law. He was subsequently reinstated after the Supreme Court of Samoa overturned the law and declared the formation of new parties legal.
In January 2010 new anti-party-hopping laws came into force, barring MPs from declaring their support for political parties or organizations with political aims other than the party they were elected for. In March 2010, he joined Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi
Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi
Lealailepule Rimoni Aiafi is a Samoan politician and former member of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. He is the founder and interim chair of the Tautua Samoa party....
and Palusalue Fa’apo II
Palusalue Fa’apo II
Palusalue Fa’apo II is a Samoan politician and former Cabinet Minister. He is the leader of the opposition Tautua Samoa Party.Palusalue was first elected to Parliament in 1996. He served as Parliamentary Undersecretary to the Minister of Justice...
in formally declaring his membership of the party and so was deemed to have resigned his seat. However, the HRPP was unable to find a candidate for the resulting by-election
Vaisigano by-election, 2010
A by-election was held in the Vaisigano No.1 constituency in Samoa in May 2010. The by-election was precipitated by the disqualification from the Legislative Assembly of Va'ai Papu Vailupe for joining the Tautua Samoa Party, and was scheduled for 14 May, However, the Human Rights Protection Party...
, and on 2 May 2010 he was declared elected unopposed, becoming the first non-HRPP MP to win a by-election.
Vailupe won his seat in the 2011 election
Samoan general election, 2011
A general election was held in Samoa on 4 March 2011, in which the people elected the 49 seats of the Fono for its 15th term. Unlike most neighbouring countries in the Pacific, Samoa has established party politics...
, but the result was overturned by an electoral petition, which found him guilty of bribery and treating.
Vailupe is the son of former Prime Minister Va'ai Kolone
Va'ai Kolone
Va'ai Kolone was a Prime Minister of Samoa and a founder of the Human Rights Protection Party in Samoa. He served as Prime Minister twice, first between 13 April and 18 September 1982, and then from 30 December 1985 until 8 April 1988...
and the brother of Samoan Democratic United Party
Samoan Democratic United Party
The Samoan Democratic United Party is the main opposition party of Samoa. The SDUP was formed in 2003 from the Samoan National Development Party and the Samoan United Independent Party...
leader Asiata Sale'imoa Va'ai.
External links
- Profile at the Samoan Fono.