Fineasi Funaki
Encyclopedia
Fineasi Funaki was a Tonga
n politician and cabinet
Minister. He was a member of the Human Rights and Democracy Movement
.
Funaki was educated at Tonga College and the Tongan teacher's training college, before studying at Brigham Young University–Hawaii. He was elected People's Representative for Ha'apai
at the 2005 election
. He was appointed Minister of Tourism in May 2006, and was reappointed after the 2008 election. In January 2008 he was accused of corruption after depositing a cheque from the Chinese Embassy to the Ministry into his personal bank account. An investigation by the Auditor-General found he had broken the law, and as a result he forfeited his salary for three months.
Funaki resigned from Cabinet in September 2010 due to ill-health.
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
n politician and cabinet
Tongan Cabinet
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...
Minister. He was a member of the Human Rights and Democracy Movement
Human Rights and Democracy Movement
The Human Rights and Democracy Movement is a political party in Tonga. Its leader is Uliti Uata.The HRDM was founded in the late 1970s as an informal group of Tongans interested in democratic reform. It was formalised in 1992 as the Pro-Democracy Movement, and contested several elections under...
.
Funaki was educated at Tonga College and the Tongan teacher's training college, before studying at Brigham Young University–Hawaii. He was elected People's Representative for Ha'apai
Ha'apai
Haapai is a group of islands, islets, reefs and shoals in the central part of the Kingdom of Tonga, with the Tongatapu group to the south and the Vavau group to the north. Seventeen of the Haapai islands are populated....
at the 2005 election
Tongan general election, 2005
A General election was held in Tonga on 17 March 2005. Only nine members of the 30-seat parliament are elected, the rest appointed by the King or are members of the Tongan aristocracy. The Human Rights and Democracy Movement won seven of the nine seats...
. He was appointed Minister of Tourism in May 2006, and was reappointed after the 2008 election. In January 2008 he was accused of corruption after depositing a cheque from the Chinese Embassy to the Ministry into his personal bank account. An investigation by the Auditor-General found he had broken the law, and as a result he forfeited his salary for three months.
Funaki resigned from Cabinet in September 2010 due to ill-health.