Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — As the people of American Samoa go to the polls today to vote for their faipule in the House of Representatives and for the Governor and Lt. Governor, an important issue has emerged that threatens to dismantle and delegitimize the efforts, hard work and preparations of two of the gubernatorial candidates.

The issue was first raised two weeks ago by the Deputy Secretary of Samoan Affairs Tauese Va'a Sunia in a letter to Election Commissioner Dr. Lealofi Uiagalelei, that use of the matai titles, Vaitautolu, Pula or Pulaalii, by candidates in the upcoming election is a violation of the law.

In an exclusive interview, Tauese clarified that he was not attempting to discredit any candidate. He explained that he was simply performing his mandated duty on behalf of Secretary of Samoan Affairs, Mauga Tasi Asuega, who was off-island at the time.

He revealed that the Office of Samoan Affairs has received expressions of concern or complaints about the use of matai titles that have not been registered in the names of some of the candidates in the November 5th election. Specifically, he named the titles of Vaitautolu of Faleasao and Pula, or Pulaalii, from Utulei.

According to Tauese, the Registrar’s Office has confirmed that Faafetai Iaulualo has not registered the title Vaitautolu and Nikolao Pula has not registered the title Pula or Pulaalii.

“This means that the use of these titles are in violation of the law,” said Tauese.

Chapter 4, Title 1.0401 of the American Samoa Code Annotated states that, "Territorial statute prohibits anyone from using a matai title before title has been registered in accordance with provisions of statute."

Tauese reiterated that the purpose of his letter to the Election Commissioner was not try to discredit the two gubernatorial candidates. On the contrary, Tauese said the Office of Samoan Affairs feels compelled to bring this matter to the Election Commissioner’s attention to ensure that there’s understanding of the law regarding matai titles.  

He emphasized that the Office of Samoan Affairs remains committed to informing families and the public about the legal requirements concerning matai titles. This includes emphasizing the prohibition against using and recognizing a matai title if it has not been officially registered in the name of the person using it.

He further expressed his concern that after the elections, disputes might arise from the use of these titles. This could lead to questions about why the Office of Samoan Affairs did not address the issue beforehand.

When asked about the timing of raising the issue with the Commissioner, Tauese explained that he had just returned from a medical checkup off-island. Upon his return, he was informed of the numerous concerns and complaints from the public regarding the matter.

He pointed out that he may be criticized by supporters of the two candidates of trying to discredit them so close to the election, but Tauese declared he was just doing his mandated duty to the people of American Samoa.

Tauese stated, this situation and its potential consequences would not have happened had everyone involved in the candidates' run for office had done their jobs.

"So instead of pointing fingers, everyone should stop for a moment and think why the candidates and their campaign committees not think of this potential threat while there was still time to rectify it," Tauese said.

He also stated that the matter should have also been identified and explained in detail by the Election Office.

The Deputy Secretary of Samoan Affairs stated that if the issue is brought up again due to the results of today's election — in the form of a lawsuit — it would ultimately be Chief Justice of the High Court of American Samoa, Lealaialoa Michael Kruse who would make the final decision.