From Matangi Tonga Magazine Vol. 17, no. 3, November 2002.

Tevita Faha‘ivalu Fotu became the second Tongan to attend the prestigious Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in England, graduating last year, and following in the footsteps of Tonga’s Crown Prince Tupouto‘a, who was the first to attend the academy.

Growing up in Fanga, Tevita did not dream of becoming a soldier, but rather he wanted to become an accountant. Now, this ambitious 27-year-old has swapped his calculator and computer for a soldier’s gear.

After earning a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Canberra in 1997, Tevita became an accountant with Tonga’s Ministry of Labour and Commerce, before he decided to enter the Tonga Defence Service in December 1999.

Commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant by the Queen of England in April 2001 this young man is living up to the motto of the academy, which is “Serve to Lead”.

“Right now I am a leader, a leader of a platoon, but for the future I would rather be operational, and be successful in the work I do, and as far as my career goes I look forward to being successful in the ranks,” said Tevita.  

He attended the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in 2000 under a program offered by the Tonga Government and the British Government, whereby he took a commissioning course for Officer in Training.

Tevita said he learned the Basic Skills Training of soldiering, in which they were trained in drills marching, navigation and map reading, radio signalling and weapons handling.

In the classroom area there was essay writing, research, and assignments based on war studies. This included the concepts of war during the First World War, analysis of the Cold War, and other studies on leaders such as Napoleon, Stalin, Churchill, and Hitler. Communications included learning how to conduct interviews, how to make presentations, and on lesson structuring.

Tevita said that they also studied conventional warfare, covering both World Wars, as well as doing warfare training exercises.

“When I first began doing this course I found it difficult because I was not used to the environment. The weather was cold compared to what I used here in Tonga and at first I did not come to grips in understanding certain military terms,” said Tevita.

“After I was commissioned as 2nd Lieutenant in April 2001 I received a program from Tonga to continue working in the British Army as part of an attachment program starting in May last year,” Tevita said.

Tevita returned to Tonga in April 2002, full of new expertise and experience, which he is putting to good use at Taliai Camp, where he is based.

2nd Lt. Fotu is a leader of a platoon in the Tonga Defence Force called the Ready Reaction Force, in which he teaches basic soldiering skills, administration skills and looks after their exercises. Tevita acts as the Rater ADFELPS test, which assesses the Australian Defence Force English Language Proficiency Services program, for Tongan soldiers who are being sent to Australia to undertake Defence Co-operation Programs.

Tevita has no regrets about becoming a soldier. “I wanted to be an accountant but now becoming a soldier is better, because I stay active, I stay healthy from physical training, I enjoy my work and it is a good life,” he said.