Mano Togamau Explained

Mano Togamau
Office1:Minister of Lands, Survey and Broadcasting
Term1:1976–1978
Successor1:Lesatele Rapi
Office2:Member of the Legislative Assembly
Term2:1970–1978
Predecessor2:Tofaeono Taulima
Term3:1964–1967
Predecessor3:Tofaeono Taulima
Successor3:Tofaeono Taulima
Constituency3:Siumu
Birth Place:Vaiee, Western Samoa
Death Date:1978 (aged 77)

Mano Togamau (died 1978) was a Western Samoan politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly in two spells from 1964 and as Minister of Lands from 1976 until his death two years later.

Biography

Togamau was born in Vaiee on the island of Upolu. He attended the Marist Brothers school in Pago Pago and Malifa High School in Apia. He then attended medical school in Fiji, subsequently working in the Western Samoa national hospital.[1] In 1960 he was elected to the Constitutional Assembly that produced the independence constitution.[2]

After retiring in 1964, Togamau entered politics and was elected to the Legislative Assembly in the Siumu constituency in the elections that year, defeating the incumbent Tofaeono Taulima by two votes.[3] Although he lost his seat to Taulima in the 1967 elections, he returned to the Legislative Assembly in the 1970 elections after defeating him for a second time. He was re-elected in 1973, and after being re-elected again in 1976, he was appointed Minister of Lands, Survey and Broadcasting.

In 1978 Togamau was injured when a truck broke through the wall of his office and pinned him against the wall. He was flown to New Zealand for treatment, but died in the plane during the journey.[1] He was survived by his wife and five children.[1]

Notes and References

  1. https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-335783130/view?partId=nla.obj-335896102#page/n66/mode/1up Mano Togamau
  2. http://www.palemene.ws/new/wp-content/uploads/Document/2016-Constitution-of-Samoa-Eng.pdf Constitution of Samoa
  3. http://devpolicy.org/samoaelections/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Samoan-Election-Results-PDF.pdf Samoan election results by constituency 1964–2016