Elisala Pita

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(d. 22 August 2016) was a

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northea ...

an politician. Pita "had a long and distinguished career with the Fisheries Department" in Tuvalu, "culminating in his being employed as a Fisheries Adviser with the USAID". For the latter position, he was based in

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Di ...

, Fiji. He eventually returned to his home country, and worked in public service, becoming Permanent Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment. In 2001, he was appointed an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, "for public and community service". He first entered

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

as an MP for

Nukufetau Nukufetau is an atoll that is part of the nation of Tuvalu. The atoll was claimed by the US under the Guano Islands Act some time in the 19th century and was ceded in a treaty of friendship concluded in 1979 and coming into force in 1983. It has ...

in a by-election in October 2003. At the time, Prime Minister Saufatu Sopoanga was struggling to retain a majority in parliament. There are no political parties in Tuvalu, and Pita was elected without having said which side of parliament he would join. He considered the matter for several days after his election, then joined the government's side, helping it maintain a majority. In August 2004, however, he

crossed the floor Crossed may refer to: * ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis * ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie * "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead'' S ...

, providing the Opposition with the majority it needed to topple the government through a

motion of no confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or mana ...

. Over the following weeks, Opposition leader Maatia Toafa and ousted prime minister Saufatu Sopoanga formed an unexpected alliance. Pita seized the opportunity to challenge for the premiership. A vote in parliament on 11 October made Toafa prime minister with eight votes, Sopoanga serving as his deputy. Pita received seven votes, and became the leader of the Opposition. He held the position until the 2006 general election, after which he sat as a

backbencher In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the ...

.Elisala Pita

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account From 2008 to 2010, as MP, he was Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. He lost his seat in parliament in the 2010 general election, with

Enele Sopoanga Enele Sosene Sopoaga PC (born 10 February 1956) is a Tuvaluan diplomat and politician who was Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2013 to 2019. Sopoaga was elected to Parliament in the 2010 general election. He served as Deputy Prime Minister and Mi ...

(brother of the former Prime Minister) replacing him. He subsequently served as Chief Executive of the Tuvalu National Private Sector Organisation, lobbying for "stronger ties between the private sector and the government". He was selected as the Opposition's candidate for a crucial by-election in Nukufetau on 28 June 2013, which would determine which side of parliament had a majority. Pita pledged, if elected, to enable the Opposition leader Enele Sopoanga, the man who whose election ousted Pita from parliament, to bid for the premiership. He won the seat with more than two thirds of the vote, and the Opposition immediately asked for parliament to be reconvened."Tuvalu’s Opposition waiting to hear from GG"
, '' Islands Business'', 1 July 2013 After the subsequent vote of no confidence in the government of Willy Telavi, Elisala Pita was appointed Minister for Works and Natural Resources on 5 August 2013 following Enele Sopoaga becoming prime minister. Following the 2015 Tuvaluan general election Elisala Pita was re-appointed as the Minister for Works and Natural Resources. Pita died on 22 August 2016 in Funafuti.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pita, Elisala 2016 deaths Members of the Parliament of Tuvalu Government ministers of Tuvalu People from Nukufetau Tuvaluan expatriates in Fiji Officers of the Order of the British Empire