Putai Taae (born 1961) is a French Polynesian politician and former Member of the Assembly of French Polynesia. He is a member of Tapura Huiraatira.

Putai Taae
Mayor of Papara
In office
26 October 2015 – 7 May 2019
Preceded byChristelle Lehartel
Succeeded byGaston Tunoa
Member of the French Polynesian Assembly
for Windward Isles 2
In office
17 May 2018 – 30 April 2023
In office
17 May 2013 – 15 August 2017
Personal details
Born1961[1]
Political partyTahoera'a Huiraatira
Tapura Huiraatira
Tavini Huiraatira

Taae first entered the Assembly of French Polynesia after the 2013 French Polynesian legislative election, as a replacement for Tearii Alpha who had been appointed to Cabinet.[2] In May 2015 he joined Tapura Huiraatira.[1] In October 2015 he was elected Mayor of Papara in a by-election[3] after the 2014 Papara municipal elections were annulled by the French Council of State.[4] He lost his seat in the Assembly in August 2017, when Nicole Sanquer left Cabinet after being elected to the French National Assembly.[5] He was re-elected to the Assembly as a Tapura candidate at the 2018 election.[6]

In April 2019 he was charged with breach of trust over the allocation of funds to a town association while mayor.[7][8] In May 2019 he was convicted and sentenced to a suspended jail sentence, a US$20,000 fine, and banned from holding public office for 2 years.[9][10] As a result he lost his position as Mayor, but stayed in the Assembly pending the resolution of his appeal.[11] In November 2021 the conviction was upheld on appeal, and he was resentenced to an identical sentence.[12] Taae appealed the sentence again, and so retained his seat in the Assembly.[13] In December 2021 the Papara municipal council was informed that Taae was being investigated for abuse of office while mayor.[14]

In September 2022 he briefly joined Tavini Huiraatira,[15] but returned to the Tapura in December[16] after opposition from Tavini activists.[17] He was not re-elected at the 2023 election

References

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  1. ^ a b "Putai TAAE". Assemblée de la Polynésie française. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  2. ^ "Le trombinoscope de la nouvelle Assemblée de Polynésie française" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 17 September 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  3. ^ "Putai Taae est élu tavana de Papara" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Les électeurs de Papara devront repasser dans les isoloirs" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 28 July 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  5. ^ "Putai Taae "déçu par des personnes qui n'ont pas tenu parole"" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 23 August 2017. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  6. ^ "Territoriales 2018 : Le nouveau visage de l'Assemblée" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 6 May 2018. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  7. ^ "Abus de confiance, prise illégale d'intérêts : Putai Taae sur la sellette" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  8. ^ "French Polynesian mayor, wife, and others, face charges". RNZ. 3 May 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  9. ^ "Corruption conviction for Tahiti mayor and assembly member". RNZ. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Condamné, Putai Taae perd tous ses mandats" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  11. ^ "Putai Taae va rester à l'assemblée malgré sa condamnation" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 17 May 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Putai Taae condamné, mais…" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 18 November 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Putai Taae forme de nouveau un pourvoi en cassation" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Putai Taae visé par une enquête pour "immixtion dans une fonction publique"" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  15. ^ "Putai Taae rejoint le Tavini" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 10 September 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  16. ^ "Putai Taae retourne au Tapura" (in French). TNTV. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
  17. ^ "Probité : Le cas Puta'i Taa'e secoue le Tavini" (in French). Tahiti Infos. 14 September 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2022.