Dr. Viliami Uasike Latu is a

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

n politician and

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ' prime minister', ' p ...

. After completing secondary education at

Tonga High School Tonga High School is a selective state-owned co-ed secondary school located in Nukualofa, Tonga. The school educates students aged 11 to 18 (Forms 1 - 7). History Tonga High School was established in 1947 by Prince Tungi as the Minister of Educa ...

, he became a high school teacher at the Mailefihi & Siuʻilikutapu College (in

Vavaʻu Vavau is an island group, consisting of one large island (ʻUtu Vavaʻu) and 40 smaller ones, in Tonga. It is part of Administrative divisions of Tonga, Vavaʻu District, which includes several other individual islands. According to tradition, ...

) in 1991. He obtained a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from ʻAtenisi University in 1995, then continued his studies at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

(

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

), obtaining a Graduate Diploma in Arts degree in 1997, then a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

in 1999. He returned to Tonga to work as a

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

, and served as Assistant Secretary to the Prime Minister's Office from 2000 to 2003, before beginning doctoral studies in

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, on a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

provided by the Japanese government. He completed his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in Asia Pacific Studies at the

Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University , commonly referred to as APU, is a private university in Beppu, Ōita, Japan. APU was established in 2000 through the collaboration of three parties from the public and private sectors: Ōita Prefecture, Beppu City, and the Ritsumeikan Trust ...

in 2006. Returning to Tonga, he served as principal assistant secretary to the Prime Minister's Officer in 2006 and 2007, then (briefly) as assistant to the chief executive officer and public relations officer at the Ministry of Education in 2008. In May of that year, he was appointed clerk of the

Legislative Assembly of Tonga The Legislative Assembly of Tonga () is the unicameral legislature of Tonga. History A Legislative Assembly providing for representation of nobles and commoners was established in 1862 by King George Tupou I. This body met every four years ...

. He stood unsuccessfully as an

independent candidate An independent politician or non-affiliated politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have polit ...

for a People's Representative seat in Vavaʻu in the April 2008 general election. He received 12.7% of the vote in Vavaʻu, finishing third of twenty-two candidates, and thus narrowly missing out on being elected as one of Vavaʻu's two representatives. He stood again in the November 2010 general election, and this time was easily elected in constituency 16 (one of Vavaʻu's three newly established constituencies), with 43.7% of the vote. New Prime Minister

Lord Tuʻivakanō Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...

subsequently appointed him to

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

as Minister for Police, Prisons and Fire Services. The appointment was controversial as Latu had previously been charged with assaulting his wife. In August 2011 he attracted further controversy by refusing to renew the contract of police commissioner Chris Kelley, effectively firing him, and appointing himself as acting police commissioner. On September 1, 2011, he was reshuffled to the Ministry for Tourism. He lost his seat in the November 2014 general election. He stood again at the

2016 Vavaʻu 16 by-election A by-election was held in the Vavaʻu 16 constituency in Tonga on 14 July 2016. It followed the conviction and unseating of MP ‘Etuate Lavulavu for bribery and campaign overspending, in January. There were four candidates: ‘Akosita Lavulavu ...

and in the 2017 election but was unsuccessful. He was re-elected to the seat of

Vavaʻu 16 Vavaʻu 16 is an electoral constituency for the Legislative Assembly in the Kingdom of Tonga. It was established for the November 2010 general election, when the multi-seat regional constituencies for People's Representatives were replaced by ...

in the 2021 election. On 28 December 2021 he was appointed to the Cabinet of

Siaosi Sovaleni Siaosi ‘Ofakivahafolau Sovaleni (born 28 February 1970), styled Hon. Hu‘akavameiliku, is a Tongan politician who served as the prime minister of Tonga from 2021 until his resignation in 2024. He had previously served as a cabinet minister, a ...

as Minister of Trade and Economic Development. On 28 March 2024 he was appointed Minister of Tourism, following the resignation of

Fekitamoeloa ʻUtoikamanu Fekitamoeloa Katoa ʻUtoikamanu (born December 1959) is a Tongan civil servant, diplomat and former Cabinet of Tonga, Cabinet Minister. From 2005 to 2009 she was Tonga's permanent ambassador to the United Nations, and from 2017 to 2021 she was Un ...

. Following the resignation of Siaosi Sovaleni he was nominated for the position of Prime Minister as the government's candidate. On 24 December 2024, he was defeated by

ʻAisake Eke ʻAisake Valu Eke is a Tongan politician who has served as prime minister of Tonga since 22 January 2025. He also served in the Cabinet as Minister for Finance and National Planning from 2014 to 2017. Education Eke received a degree in economic ...

by 16 votes to 8.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Latu, Viliami Members of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga Government ministers of Tonga Living people University of Auckland alumni Tongan schoolteachers Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University alumni Independent politicians in Tonga People from Vavaʻu Year of birth missing (living people)