Avoka Kent
| Avoka Kent | |
|---|---|
 LC Avoka Kent.png | |
| Born | 1973/12/20 Kolovai, Tonga |
| 💀Died | 2006/11/16 Nuku'alofa2006/11/16 |
| 🏳️ Nationality | Tongan |
| 💼 Occupation | Singer, Lord Chancellor of Tonga |
Avoka Kent (December 20, 1973, Kolovai - November 16, 2006, Nuku'alofa) was a Tongan singer and politician who served as Lord Chancellor of Tonga from 1997 to 2001. She was the only female lord chancellor in Tongan history, and the only non-noble to hold this office. During the Avoka Kent's tenure in office, the powers of lord chancellor were constitutionally reshaped, making the lord chancellor de-facto a head of executive branch in Tonga. According to various political analysts, Kent asserted more powers under the law than the King of Tonga himself. In 2001, she was impeached by the Legislative Assembly of Tonga after long-lasting accusations of committing political crimes, up to and including torture and murder of civilians, thus making herself the first and the only head of Tonga to be impeached and later tried and convicted in absentia.
In 1995, Kent received a law bachelor diploma and graduated from university, and was appointed by King Taufa'ahau Tupou to the rank of Ambassador of Tonga to United States after briefly serving as an Assistant Secretary in Corporate Services Division of Tongan Ministry of Finance. In an unprecedented move in 1996, the King appointed Avoka Kent to the rank of Lord Chancellor, making her the first 22-year-old female to hold this position.
