Poasi Tei
Poasi Mataele Tei is a Tongan politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga.
Tei was educated at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts and an MBA. Before entering politics he worked for the Statistics Department, as an accountant for the Tonga Co-operative Federation, Pacific Finance and Investment, Tonga Water Board and Tonga Airport Limited.Political Career
He was first elected to Parliament as a Democratic Party of the Friendly Islands candidate at the 2014 Tongan general election, and was appointed as Minister for Public Enterprises in the ʻAkilisi Pōhiva Cabinet. In 2015 he attempted to remove two nobles as directors of the Tonga Broadcasting Commission, but the decision was later overturned by the courts. He was re-elected at the 2017 election and appointed as Minister of Energy, Environment, Information and Climate Change.
Following the death of ʻAkilisi Pōhiva Tei supported Pohiva Tuʻiʻonetoa for Prime Minister. He retained his portfolios in the Tuʻiʻonetoa's Cabinet.
