Last Friday the Office of Electoral Commission (OEC) closed the nomination period and in the process confirmed the candidacy of eight individuals who will contest next month’s three by-elections.

The entry of a new political party, Constitution Democracy Republic Party has created a buzz among pundits with Feutaga’iimealelei Osovale Brown also creating history by being its first election candidate. He will contest the  Va’a o Fonoti constituency seat together with Leausa Dr. Take Naseri (Human Rights Protection Party) and Mau’u Siaosi Puepuemai (Fa’atuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (FAST).

For the Siumu seat, there are three candidates Fa’alogo Kapeli Lafaele who is an independent, Tu’uu Amaramo Sialaoa of the H.R.P.P. and Tu’uu Anasii Leota for the ruling FAST. The Faleata No. 4 seat has two candidates with FAST candidate and former M.P. Ale Vena Ale taking on Ulu Bismarck Crawley, who has returned after unsuccessfully contesting the 2021 General Election, but this time running as an independent.

According to the by-election schedule released by the OEC on 18 August 2023, all candidates have until this coming Thursday 31 August 2023 to withdraw their nominations, with Pre-Polling scheduled for Wednesday 13 September 2023 and Polling proper on Friday 15 September 2023.

An article (New Party enters by-elections race) in yesterday’s edition of the Weekend Observer reported the closing of the nomination period with the parties and their candidates as well as those who are running as independents now preparing to begin their campaigning.

There is a lot at stake for both the governing FAST as well as the HRPP with both political parties already having an eye on the bigger stakes that would come into play in the 2026 General Election. 

Essentially, some of the key questions that eligible voters in the three by-election constituencies would ask are how much the Government has done in their communities over the last 2-plus years and whether giving the reigns back to an HRPP Member of Parliament is in their best interest.

FAST candidates will walk into the by-elections confident that the backing of the Government and their party being in power puts them in the box seat to claim victory, though their rivals in the Opposition party would hope to capitalise on recent controversies, which put the current administration in a bad light and raised questions about the integrity of a couple of Cabinet Ministers.

There is no doubt that the decision by the Government to defer the next sitting of the Legislative Assembly to October this year was an attempt to minimise the effects of the fallout from the various controversies that were linked to key personalities within the Government, especially on the eve of three by-elections which if won by the ruling party will put FAST in a strategic position to be able to push three legislative reforms that it had earlier promised its supporters prior to the 2021 General Election.

So what can we expect to see over the next three weeks in the lead-up to polling in mid-September and as a voter what are your expectations of the aspiring politicians who will now come and knock on your day to appeal for your ballot?

We believe this is an opportune time for voters in the Va’a o Fonoti, Siumu and Faleata No. 4 constituencies to take the candidates to task over how some of the current Cabinet Ministers conducted themselves in relation to recent controversies and where they (candidates) stand in relation to the positions that the leaders themselves have taken.

Even questions relating to the disbursement of the SAT$1 million District Development Grant are necessary as to how the aspiring Member of Parliament intends to use the public funds with just over 3 years remaining before the next general election.

Seeing that these by-elections are likely to be the last before the next general election, use this opportunity to seriously think about the kind of leaders that you as a voter would want Samoa to have, and whether the current crop of leaders that the country currently has are meeting up to the benchmarks that you are setting for yourself and the nation.

Having the ability to celebrate our democracy consistently over the last 61 years, let’s continue to uphold the values of democracy that our forefathers instilled through Samoa’s Constitution and ensure that all voters in the three constituencies get to exercise their democratic rights in a free and safe environment.