| Tommy Esang Remengesau | |
|---|---|
| President of Palau | |
| In office 1 January 2001 – 15 January 2009 |
|
| Vice President | Sandra Pierantozzi (2001-2005) Camsek Chin (2005-2009) |
| Preceded by | Kuniwo Nakamura |
| Succeeded by | Johnson Toribiong |
| Vice President of Palau | |
| In office January 1, 1993 – January 1, 2001 |
|
| President | Kuniwo Nakamura |
| Preceded by | Kuniwo Nakamura |
| Succeeded by | Sandra Pierantozzi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 28 February 1956 Koror, Palau |
| Spouse(s) | Debbie Remengesau |
Thomas Esang Remengesau, Jr. (born 28 February 1956) is a Palauan politician who served as president of Palau from 2001 to 2009.
He became vice-president in 1992 and was elected as president in 2000; he took office on January 1, 2001. He wished to make Palau less dependent upon United States aid, and to promote limited tourism and fishing activities. In Palau's foreign affairs, Remengesau has been active in maintaining Palau's presence in international organization. He has led official delegations to Taiwan (Republic of China) multiple times, and hosted the first Taiwan-Pacific Allies Summit in September 2006.
Contents |
Remengesau was born in Koror, Palau. His father is Thomas Remengesau, Sr., another Palau politician who served as acting president twice. Remengesau was educated at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, in the United States.
In 1984, at 28 years old, Remengesau was elected to the Palau National Congress (Olbiil Era Kelulau), becoming the youngest senator in the nation's history. In 1992, he was elected Vice-President and served a full two terms. In 2000, with the support of outgoing president Kuniwo Nakamura he won the presidential election, defeating ex-senator Peter Sugiyama by a margin of 52% to 46%.[1] He easily won re-election in 2004, defeating Polycarp Basilius by a margin of 66.5% to 33.5%, in a race dogged with rumors of improper financial influence from Taipei and Beijing.[2]
Remengesau announced in 2008 that he would seek a seat in the Senate of Palau in the general elections that year. His term limited to just two terms in office.[3] He came in 11th in the election.
Remengesau was succeeded as President by Johnson Toribiong on January 15, 2009.[4]
In 2009, Remengesau faced 19 counts of violating Palau's code of ethics for his failure to disclose his interests in real properties and other assets in 2002 and 2003. Remengesau had at least US$185,538 in accounts in his own name at the time, as well as other monies held by his wife and children. In April 2010, Associate Justice Kathleen Salii imposed a fine of US$156,400 on Remengesau, just one-eighth of the fine recommended by prosecutor Michael Copeland; however, Copeland would go on to express his satisfaction with the sentence in media interviews.[5]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Kuniwo Nakamura |
Vice President of Palau 1993 – 2001 |
Succeeded by Sandra Pierantozzi |
| Preceded by Kuniwo Nakamura |
President of Palau 2001 – 2009 |
Succeeded by Johnson Toribiong |
|
|||||||||||
|
|
|||||||