Viliami Veasi‘i Veikune

Who is Viliami Veasi‘i Veikune?

Viliami Veasiʻi Veikune, styled Lord Tuʻihaʻateiho is a Tongan noble, politician, and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga. He is the 15th person to hold the Tuʻihaʻateiho title, and was appointed to it on 5 June 2004.

He "grew up and was educated in Hawai'i & Alaska".

He served for a time as Chairman of the Tonga Body Builders Association.

Tuʻihaʻateiho was elected as a noble representative for Ha'apai in the 2005 and 2008 elections. He was re-elected in the 2010 elections.

In December 2010 Tuʻihaʻateiho was charged with possession of an illegal firearm. If convicted, he would lose his seat in Parliament. Before his trial, however, Parliament adopted an amendment to the Arms and Ammunition Act, lessening the potential sentence that he faced, so that if convicted he would nonetheless retain his seat in Parliament. The Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands, which had opposed the amendment, asked King George Tupou V to veto it, which he did.

Lord Tuʻihaʻateiho will appear before a magistrate's court on 11 June 2012. His counsel is fellow MP Siosifa Tuʻutafaiva.