Ngamau Munokoa

Ngamau Mere Munokoa OBE (born 13 August 1944), also known as "Aunty Mau", is a Cook Islands politician and former Cabinet Minister. She was the third woman ever elected to the Cook Islands Parliament,[1] the second appointed to Cabinet,[2] and the first to hold the post of Cook Islands Deputy Prime Minister.[3] She is a member of the Cook Islands Democratic Party.

Ngamau Munokoa

OBE
Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands
In office
5 November 2003 – 19 November 2004
Prime MinisterRobert Woonton
Preceded byTerepai Maoate
Succeeded byGeoffrey Henry
Minister of Justice
In office
15 September 2005 – 23 December 2009
Prime MinisterJim Marurai
Preceded byTupou Faireka
Succeeded byApii Piho
Minister of Agriculture
In office
15 September 2005 – 23 December 2009
Preceded byTupou Faireka
Succeeded byRobert Wigmore
Minister of Internal Affairs
In office
1 December 1999 – 12 February 2002
Prime MinisterTerepai Maoate
Preceded byTupou Faireka
Succeeded byPeri Vaevae Pare
Minister of Works
In office
1 December 1999 – 12 February 2002
Prime MinisterTerepai Maoate
Preceded byTupou Faireka
Succeeded byTom Marsters
Member of the Cook Islands Parliament
for Nikao–Panama
In office
July 1996 – 14 June 2018
Preceded byNiroa Manuela
Succeeded byVaine Mokoroa
Personal details
Born13 August 1944
Rarotonga
Political partyCook Islands Democratic Party

Early life

Munokoa was born in Rarotonga and attended Arorangi, Avarua and Nikao Primary schools and Tereora College.[4] She trained for clerical work in Auckland, New Zealand in the hope of becoming a teacher, but returned to the Cook Islands in 1962 to open a shop.[1]

Political career

Munokoa first ran for Parliament in 1994, but was unsuccessful.[1] She was elected in the 1996 Nikao–Panama by-election, defeating then-Cook Islands Party candidate Tina Browne.[5] In 1999 she was appointed as Minister of Internal Affairs and Works in the Cabinet of Sir Terepai Maoate.[6] She later served in the Cabinet of Robert Woonton, and in 2003 was appointed Deputy Prime Minister, becoming the first Cook Islands woman to hold the position.[3] She later resigned from Woonton's Cabinet following his decision to form a coalition with the rival Cook Islands Party,[7] but was reappointed in 2005 by Jim Marurai.[8] She continued to serve in Cabinet, holding various portfolios,[9] until December 2009, when she resigned over the sacking of Democratic Party leader Terepai Maoate.[10][11]

She was re-elected at the 2010 election, and again in 2014. She failed to be re-elected in the 2018 election, losing to Vaine Mokoroa.[12]

Munokoa was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours.[13]

References
  1. "Aunty Mau hopes for fifth term". Cook Islands News. 15 November 2010. Archived from the original on 17 June 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2010.
  2. "The new-look Cook Islands' cabinet". Pacific Islands Monthly. 70 (1). 1 January 2000. p. 15. Retrieved 26 July 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "Cook Islands no confidence motion dropped to avoid confusion". RNZ. 7 November 2003. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  4. "Hon. Ngamau Mere Munokoa". Cook Islands parliament. Archived from the original on 1 October 2010. Retrieved 9 April 2009.
  5. Crocombe, R G; Crocombe, M T (1997). "The Cook Islands in Review: Issues and Events, 1 July 1995 to 30 June 1996". Retrieved 6 March 2011.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  6. "Portfolio Allocations". Pacific Islands Report. 2 December 1999. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  7. "Cook Islands Democratic party says it has numbers to form next government". RNZ. 16 November 2004. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  8. "TWO NEW MINISTERS JOIN COOK ISLANDS CABINET". Pacific Islands Report. 15 September 2005. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  9. "Changes announced to Ministries". Cook Islands Herald. Retrieved 11 April 2009.
  10. "Cooks Deputy Prime Minister replaced, prompting a walkout". RNZ. 24 December 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  11. "Cabinet Ministers Resign in Support of Party Leader". Democratic Party - Cook Islands. 23 December 2009. Archived from the original on 9 July 2011. Retrieved 25 December 2009.
  12. "Preliminary Results from Votes Counted 14-06-2018". Cook Islands Ministry of Justice. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 18 June 2018.
  13. "No. 59283". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2009. p. 29.
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