| Mulitalo Siafausa Vui | |
| Office: | Minister of Communications and Information Technology |
| Primeminister: | Tuilaepa Aiono Sailele Malielegaoi |
| Term Start: | 24 April 2006 |
| Term End: | 16 August 2006 |
| Predecessor: | Misa Telefoni Retzlaff |
| Successor: | Safuneitu'uga Pa'aga Neri |
| Office2: | Minister of Health |
| Term Start2: | 20 March 2001 |
| Term End2: | 24 April 2006 |
| Predecessor2: | Misa Telefoni Retzlaff |
| Successor2: | Gatoloaifaana Amataga Alesana-Gidlow |
| Office3: | Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa |
| Term Start3: | 1996 |
| Term End3: | 20 March 2001 |
| Constituency Mp15: | Fa'asaleleaga No. 4 |
| Parliament15: | Samoa |
| Term Start15: | 26 April 1996 |
| Term End15: | 16 August 2006 |
| Predecessor15: | Vui Viliamu |
| Successor15: | Vui Tupe Ioane |
| Death Date: | 21 July 2013 |
| Death Place: | Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole hospital, Apia, Samoa[1] |
| Party: | Human Rights Protection Party |
Vaiotu Mulitalo Sealiimalietoa Siafausa Vui (1945 - 21 July 2013)[2] was a Samoan politician and Cabinet Minister.
Vui was born in Lano, Samoa and had served as Commissioner of Police.[2] He was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Samoa in the 1996 election and served as Deputy Speaker.[3] He was re-elected in the 2001 election and appointed Minister of Health.[4] [5] As Health Minister he established the Kidney Foundation and a local dialysis unit.[1] [6] In September 2005 while Acting Prime Minister he attempted to crush strike action by local doctors by bringing in strikebreakers from New Zealand.[7] After a government inquiry into the doctors' grievances failed to recommend a pay rise, all public hospital doctors resigned.[8]
He was re-elected in the 2006 election and appointed Minister of Communications and Information Technology.[9] He was subsequently convicted of bribery and treating in an election petition brought by his defeated rival Sua Rimoni Ah Chong, and his election was declared void.[10] Vui threatened to sue the Attorney-General's office for failing to support him,[11] and encouraged the government to bring criminal charges against Ah Chong,[12] which ultimately resulted in his conviction.[13]
Vui was subsequently appointed Public Service Commissioner in October 2007.[14] In 2008 he appeared in court on charges of carrying a weapon after arming himself with a rifle during a land dispute.[15] He was eventually convicted and discharged.[16] In March 2009 he and his family were banished for life from the village of Vaimoso after bestowing a high-ranking matai title on members of his family without village permission.[17] The banishment was subsequently upheld by the lands and Titles Court.[18]
Vui ran again for the seat of Fa'asaleleaga No. 4 in the 2011 election, but was unsuccessful.[19]
In 2009 he was charged with 20 counts of indecent assault against a woman who worked for him.[20] The case was not made public as he was granted name suppression.[20] In July 2012 he was convicted on ten counts.[21] [22] [23] An initial sentence of a $3,000 fine was appealed,[20] and he was ultimately given a two-year suspended sentence.[24]
He died of heart failure at Tupua Tamasese Mea'ole hospital in Apia in July 2013.[1]