Maurice Ponga | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the European Parliament for Overseas Territories | |
| In office 2009–2019 | |
| Preceded by | Margie Sudre |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 5,1947 Kouaoua,New Caledonia |
| Citizenship | French |
| Political party | The Rally |
Maurice Ponga (born 5 June 1947 in Kouaoua,New Caledonia) is a French politician who served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2009 until 2019. He was elected in the 2009 European election for the Overseas constituency.
Ponga is a Melanesian (Kanak),but unlike most Kanaks,he opposes New Caledonia's independence from France and is a member of The Rally-UMP,a major anti-independence party. He has represented the party,known as RPCR until 2002,in the Congress of New Caledonia between 1995 and 2009. While in office,he participated in all but one New Caledonian government. Most recently,as Minister of Youth and Sports in the Martin II government,he played a major role in the success of Noumea's bid for the 2011 Pacific Games.
In the 2009 European elections,Ponga was the UMP's candidate in the Pacific Section of the Overseas constituency,and his candidacy was locally supported by all anti-independence parties. The UMP won one seat in the constituency with 29.7% of the votes,and since the UMP obtained its highest result in the Pacific Section (44.4%),Ponga was elected to the European Parliament. He is the second New Caledonian and second Kanak to serve as an MEP,after Dick Ukeiwé (also a member of the RPCR),who served between 1989 and 1994.
In the Republicans’2017 leadership election,Ponga endorsed Laurent Wauquiez. [1]
In 2019,Ponga was the winner of the Development Award at The Parliament Magazine's annual MEP Awards. [2]
New Caledonia is a sui generis collectivity of overseas France in the southwest Pacific Ocean,south of Vanuatu,about 1,210 km (750 mi) east of Australia,and 17,000 km (11,000 mi) from Metropolitan France. The archipelago,part of the Melanesia subregion,includes the main island of Grande Terre,the Loyalty Islands,the Chesterfield Islands,the Belep archipelago,the Isle of Pines,and a few remote islets. The Chesterfield Islands are in the Coral Sea. French people,especially locals,call Grande Terre "Le Caillou".
New Caledonia is a French sui generis collectivity with a system of government based on parliamentarism and representative democracy. The President of the Government is the head of government,and there is a multi-party system,with Executive power being exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Congress of New Caledonia. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
The Future Together was a center-right political party in New Caledonia supporting the maintenance of political and administrative ties with France.
The Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front is a pro-independence alliance of political parties in New Caledonia. It was founded in 1984 at a congress of various political parties. Its supporters are mostly from the Kanak indigenous population but also include supporters from other ethnic communities.
The Federation of Pro-Independence Co-operation Committees is a political party in New Caledonia supporting the island's independence from France,although it is the most moderate of all nationalist parties.
Marie-Noëlle Thémereau is a New Caledonian politician who served as the former president of the government of New Caledonia,an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean about 1,210 km east of Australia. She has been a member of the loyalist Future Together party.
French Black people or Black people in France (French:Noirs de France) or Afro-French (Afro-Français) are French citizens or residents who are of Sub-Saharan African or Melanesian ancestry. It also includes people of mixed African/Melanesian and French ancestry.
Marc Joulaud is a French politician who served as Member of the European Parliament for the West France constituency from 2014 until 2019. He is a member of the French center right party Les Républicains (LR). He was given a suspended three-year sentence due to the Fillon affair.
Michèle Tabarot is a French politician of the Republicans who currently serves as a member of the National Assembly of France. She represents the Alpes-Maritimes 9th constituency.
The Movement for Diversity is a right-wing political party in New Caledonia,strongly supportive of the French status of the region;it is close to the French Union for a Popular Movement.
Philippe Gomès is a New Caledonian politician and,from 5 June 2009 to 11 March 2011,President of the Government of New Caledonia,an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. He served as a member of the National Assembly from 2008 until 2022.
Damien Abad is a French politician of who has been serving as Minister of Solidarity in the government of Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne since 2022.
Philippe Juvin is a French medical doctor and politician of the Republicans (LR) who served as a Member of the European Parliament from 2009 until 2019 for the Île-de-France constituency.
Alain Cadec is a French politician of the Republicans (LR) who has been serving as a member of the Senate since the 2020 elections,representing the Côtes-d'Armor district. He previously was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the West France constituency from 2009 until 2019.
Michel Dantin is a French politician who served as a Member of the European Parliament for the South-East France constituency from 2009 until 2019. In addition,he has been the mayor of Chambéry from 2014 to 2020. He is a member of the Republicans.
An independence referendum was held in New Caledonia on 4 November 2018. Voters were given the choice of remaining part of France or becoming an independent country.
Geoffroy Didier is a French lawyer and politician of the Republicans who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2017.
Legislative elections were held in New Caledonia on 8 February 1953.
Legislative elections were held in New Caledonia on 11 September 1977. Anti-autonomy parties won 19 of the 35 seats.
Pierre Maresca was a French politician and journalist in New Caledonia.
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