LONG TENURE: Samoa's Head of State Malietoa Tanumafili II has died aged 94.
For at least the last decade Samoans have always offered a quiet prayer when word came that Malietoa Tanumafili II was ill.


Samoa is a young nation and no one under the age of 45 had ever known the country without the fatherly leadership of Malietoa.

Now he is dead and the question of succession arrives for the first time in the history of the Independent State of Samoa.

But three years ago quiet measures were put in place to prepare for the inevitable when two men were sworn in as members of Samoa's Council of Deputies. One was former prime minister Tuiatua Tupua Tamasese Efi, and the other, Tuimaleali'ifano Sualauvi II.

No one would publicly say that the appointment of these two men - who would serve as deputy head of state - was about succession and Tupua's family was deeply critical of a media report that suggested this. At the time Tupua was refusing to join the Council but a curious double-standard was involved.

Samoa's high chiefs do not like talk of succession and titles. But they themselves over a lifetime fight through the Lands and Titles Court in a manner that is barely polite.

As it is, the issue of who comes after Malietoa and how, carries important historical significance while defining the way ahead for Samoa.

One has to go back to the 19th century to see the last such battle, not least because the combined longevity of the Tanumafili puts succession beyond the living memory of any person now. Samoa has four tama-a-aiga or royal titles, heads of extended families:

Malietoa, Tamasese and Tuimaleali'ifano. The fourth, Mata'afa, has been vacant since 1997.

When Samoa was negotiating with New Zealand for independence and drafting a constitution, the question of head of state, or the 'O le Ao o le Malo', was potentially vexatious. But they came up with a joint life-term Head of State. One was Malietoa, the other was Tupua Tamasese Meole, the father of the current holder.

Under the constitution, the Fale Fono or Legislative Assembly, will elect the next head of state for a five year term.

The presumption, not stated in the constitution, is that the post will go to a 'tama-a-aiga' and a member of the Council of Deputies. But it has never been tested.

Independence came in 1962 and a year later, Tupua Tamasese died. Malietoa lived on as a very much-loved man, incorruptible, humble and funny. With his death, his most likely successor as Head of State will be Tupua Tamasese Efi. In the 1970s he served as prime minister, under the Tupuola Efi title.

He has collected a slew of paramount titles-some following protracted and unedifying legal battles. Although he says he does not want the job, he is not his own man: he must serve the thousands who eventually bestowed the royal title on him.

As a politician, Tupua enjoyed the cut-and-thrust of party politics and political debate. He is also a stickler for fa'a Samoa (or Samoan culture) and the Samoan language.

The various extended families under his titles though made no secret they did not enjoy the vision of their prince engaged in the political trenches, feeling he should be above the fray. An additional factor for Tupua has been the problem that once a politician, always a politician.

He lost his premiership to the Human Rights Protection Party, which continues to reign in Samoa, and his personal animosity for the late Prime Minister Tofilau Eti was strong.

In fact electing a new Head of State will be the easy part; head of state is a ceremonial title in which the holder must act on the advice of government.

Not so the next Malietoa, awesomely powerful with control of much of Samoa's land. The title came about nearly a thousand years ago when Samoa was under Tonga's suzerainty.

Led by two chiefs, Samoans were able to drive the occupiers off, who left with a shouted chant across the waters: 'Malie tau, malie toa' (splendidly fought, brave warriors!).

As a result, it became one of the central titles and when Europeans showed up later, it was perhaps the most interfered with of them all. The appointment of a new Malietoa will be a two-stage process. The first will involve defining those who have the pule or authority within the Sa Malietoa, the extended family, to name a successor.

By tradition, authority rests with the nine senior matai or chiefs in the village of Malie, west of Apia, in the district of Tuamasaga, on the island of Upolu. In theory, they must also consult the district of Safotulafai in Savai'i and the island of Manono.

But it will not be simple as the Sa Malietoa is large and diverse, and those excluded can be counted on going to the Lands and Titles Court at Mulinu'u, on the western side of Apia harbour. There, some brave judge will make the decision on who can make the next decision.

Thus empowered, the matai will go off and consider who will be so blessed.

Nothing is automatic, and titles do not always pass to the first born of the next generation. It will, however, take many years.

Also see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malietoa