Tingika Elikana
Tingika Elikana | |
|---|---|
| Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of the Cook Islands | |
| Assumed office 22 March 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Tai Tura |
| Member of the Cook Islands Parliament for Pukapuka–Nassau | |
| Assumed office 14 June 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Tekii Lazaro |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 5 November 1961 |
| Political party | Cook Islands Party |
Tingika Elikana (born 5 November 1961)[1] is a Cook Islands civil servant and politician and member of the Cook Islands Parliament. He is a member of the Cook Islands Party.
Elikana was born on Pukapuka and educated at Pukapuka School and Tereora College.[1] He studied law at Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and then a Masters of Business Administration at the University of the South Pacific as well as public sector management at Massey University.[1] He worked as a police officer,[1] and then as a crown prosecutor,[2] Deputy Solicitor General,[3] and Solicitor General.[4] From 2011 to 2018 he was Secretary for Justice.[5]
He was elected to Parliament at the 2018 Cook Islands general election. After his election, the government charted a special flight at a cost of $32,000 to collect him from the outer islands.[6] The flight was later the subject of a private prosecution launched against Prime Minister Henry Puna by former MP Norman George.[7] As an MP, Elikana chaired the select committee which decided that homosexuality should remain a criminal offence in the Cook Islands.[8] In February 2020 he was accused of orchestrating the sacking of six public servants who belonged to the opposition Democratic Party.[9] Following the election of Mark Brown as Prime Minister he was appointed Associate Minister of Justice, Finance and Economic Management, Foreign Affairs and Immigration.[10] On 22 March 2021 he was elected Deputy Speaker, replacing Tai Tura.[11]
He was re-elected at the 2022 Cook Islands general election.[12]
References
- ^ a b c d "Tingika ELIKANA". Cook Islands Parliament. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
- ^ "Document theft convict in Cooks government escapes jail". RNZ. 2 December 2005. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "Pago Pago longliner allowed to leave Cooks". RNZ. 18 December 2006. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "Cook Islands Government official says House of Ariki needs a revamp". RNZ. 23 December 2008. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "NEW HEAD OF MINISTRY OF JUSTICE". Public Service Commissioner. 23 November 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "Govt charters flight for election winners in the Cook Islands". RNZ. 3 July 2018. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Losirene Lacanivalu (20 March 2020). "Prosecution of PM dropped". Cook Islands News. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ "Most Cook Islanders support same-sex relations ban - committee". RNZ. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Melina Etches (15 February 2020). "Furore over 'island politics'". Cook Islands News. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Emmanuel Samoglou and Rashneel Kumar (8 October 2020). "PM takes on 17 portfolios". Cook Islands News. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
- ^ Melina Etches (23 March 2021). "Mauke MP Tura appointed Speaker of Parliament". Cook Islands News. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
- ^ "WARRANT DECLARING THE SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES AND THE NUMBER OF VOTES RECEIVED BY EACH CANDIDATE" (PDF). Cook Islands Gazette. 11 August 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.