Lautimuia Uelese Vaʻai
Minister of Finance
Assumed office
1 October 2023
Prime MinisterFiamē Naomi Mataʻafa
Preceded byMulipola Anarosa Ale Molioo
Member of the Samoan Parliament
for Vaimauga 3
Assumed office
7 March 2023
Preceded byTapunuu Niko Lee Hang
Personal details
Born1968 or 1969 (age 54–55)[1]
Political partyFaʻatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi

Lautimuia Afoa Uelese Vaʻai (born 1968 or 1969) is a Samoan politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa. He is a member of the FAST Party. He is a nephew of former Prime Minister Vaʻai Kolone.[2]

Lautimuia is from the villages of Magiagi and Vaisala and trained as an accountant at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji and Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand.[3] He worked as a lecturer at the National University of Samoa and as a senior civil servant before being appointed chief executive of the Samoa Shipping Corporation in November 2017.[3][4]

He contested the 2016 Samoan general election in the Vaimauga West 1 Constituency as a candidate for the Human Rights Protection Party.[5]

In February 2023 he was selected as the FAST Party candidate for the 2023 Vaimauga 3 by-election.[1][2][6] He won the by-election, defeating his HRPP rival by 400 votes in the preliminary count.[7][8] He was sworn in as an MP on 7 March 2023.[9]

In a cabinet reshuffle on 6 September 2023 he was appointed Minister of Finance, replacing Mulipola Anarosa Ale Molioo from 1 October 2023.[10][11]

References

  1. 1 2 Matai'a Lanuola Tusani T - Ah Tong (2 February 2023). "F.A.S.T. candidate eyes employment opportunities". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  2. 1 2 "FAST By-election Candidate Targets Education, Business & Employment". Talamua. 3 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  3. 1 2 Joyetter Feagaimaali’i-Luamanu (28 November 2017). "New man in charge of Shipping Services". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  4. ↑ "Lautimuia Vaai: Taking calculated risks". Samoa Observer. 11 March 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  5. ↑ Martha Taumata Faavae (20 June 2020). "Samoa Shipping Boss Gives 2021 General Elections A Miss". Newsline Samoa. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  6. ↑ "Samoa Shipping Services General Manager is the FAST Party Candidate for Vaimauga 3". Samoa Global News. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  7. ↑ "FAST Party Win Vaimauga 3 By-Election". Samoa Global News. 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  8. ↑ Talaia Mika (24 February 2023). "F.A.S.T. leads Vaimauga poll after preliminary count". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  9. ↑ Sialai Sarafina Sanerivi (7 March 2023). "Lautimuia embarks on new journey as MP". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  10. ↑ "Samoa Prime Minister Announces Cabinet Reshuffle: New Finance Minister and Two Additional Ministers". Samoa Global News. 6 September 2023. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  11. ↑ Sialai Sarafina Sanerivi (9 September 2023). "New Finance Minister ready to serve with "humility"". Samoa Observer. Retrieved 9 September 2023.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.