Fale Andrew Lesā- special officer to the then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
john luke made this Official Information request to Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
The request was successful.
From: john luke
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
I noted,
https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story...
"The Selangor State Exco, YB Tuan Ganabatirau Veraman had a fruitful meeting with Mr Fale Andrew Lesa, City Councillor of the Manurewa Local Board - Auckland City Council & Samoan Native United Nations Diplomat and the Special Officer to Jacinda Prime Minister of New Zealand at Selangor State Secretariat Building (SUK) Shah Alam.
During discussions both sides covered entire breath of bilateral cooperation & held productive discussions on strong partnership between the State of Selangor and the Government of New Zealand."
I would appreciate it if you could confirm whether Mr. Andrew Lesā has, in fact, been formally appointed as a Special Officer to the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
Additionally, could you please clarify the Prime Minister’s Office’s policies and procedures regarding the misrepresentation of such roles or titles, particularly in an international context?
Given the seriousness of this matter and its potential implications, I would like to take this opportunity to formally raise this as an issue of public concern.
Yours faithfully,
john luke
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Tēnā koe,
Thank you for emailing the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
(DPMC), including the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
DPMC can't respond to emails that are outside its scope. If the subject of
your email doesn't relate to the work of DPMC, we may forward your email
to the appropriate Minister or agency who will respond to you directly. To
find out more about DPMC's functions please view our
website [1]https://dpmc.govt.nz/.
If your correspondence is intended for the Prime Minister please email his
office at [2][email address]. Contact information for
other Members of Parliament can be found at
[3]https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve....
Common questions:
* Official Information Act (OIA) requests will be formally acknowledged
during office hours and actioned accordingly. For more information
about the statutory OIA timeframes please see
[4]http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/.
* For job opportunities within DPMC see
[5]https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz.... Please use this
website to apply for vacancies. Resumes received through other avenues
will not be considered.
* New Zealand visas and requests for asylum are managed by Immigration
New Zealand. Please see [6]https://www.immigration.govt.nz/.
We hope one of the above links helps answer your question. Thanks again
and please take care.
Link: [7]File-List
Link: [8]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [9]themeData
Link: [10]colorSchemeMapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
Visible links
1. https://dpmc.govt.nz/ Ctrl+Click or tap to follow the link
https://dpmc.govt.nz/
2. mailto:[email address]
mailto:[email address]
3. https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve...
https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involve...
4. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/ Ctrl+Click or tap to follow the link
http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/
5. https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz...
https://centralagenciesjobs.cass.govt.nz...
6. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
10. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
hide quoted sections
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
Thank you for your request under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA)
received on 9 September 2025, copied below. We will respond to your
request within the statutory timeframes set out in the Act. If we are
unable to meet these timeframes we will notify you.
Your request will be managed by the Ministerial Services team within DPMC.
If you have any queries, please feel free to contact us at
[DPMC request email].
DPMC may publish the response to your OIA request. If we publish the
response your personal information, including your name and contact
details, will be removed.
Ngâ mihi,
Ministerial Coordinator
Ministerial Services
Strategy, Governance and Engagement
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
E [DPMC request email]
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
-----Original Message-----
From: john luke <[FOI #32274 email]>
Sent: Tuesday, 9 September 2025 8:04 pm
To: Information [DPMC] <[DPMC request email]>
Subject: Official Information request - Fale Andrew Lesâ- special officer
to the then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
Dear Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet,
I noted,
[1]https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story...
"The Selangor State Exco, YB Tuan Ganabatirau Veraman had a fruitful
meeting with Mr Fale Andrew Lesa, City Councillor of the Manurewa Local
Board - Auckland City Council & Samoan Native United Nations Diplomat and
the Special Officer to Jacinda Prime Minister of New Zealand at Selangor
State Secretariat Building (SUK) Shah Alam.
During discussions both sides covered entire breath of bilateral
cooperation & held productive discussions on strong partnership between
the State of Selangor and the Government of New Zealand."
I would appreciate it if you could confirm whether Mr. Andrew Lesâ has, in
fact, been formally appointed as a Special Officer to the Prime Minister
Jacinda Ardern.
Additionally, could you please clarify the Prime Minister’s Office’s
policies and procedures regarding the misrepresentation of such roles or
titles, particularly in an international context?
Given the seriousness of this matter and its potential implications, I
would like to take this opportunity to formally raise this as an issue of
public concern.
Yours faithfully,
john luke
-------------------------------------------------------------------
This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #32274 email]
Is [DPMC request email] the wrong address for Official Information
requests to Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet? If so, please
contact us using this form:
[2]https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on
the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
[3]https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please
ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA
page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Link: [4]File-List
Link: [5]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [6]themeData
Link: [7]colorSchemeMapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
Link: [8]File-List
Link: [9]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [10]themeData
Link: [11]colorSchemeMapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
Visible links
1. https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story...
2. https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...
3. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers
4. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
5. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
6. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
10. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
11. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
hide quoted sections
From: Information [DPMC]
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
[UNCLASSIFIED]
Kia ora,
Please see the attached letter regarding your recent OIA request.
Ngā mihi,
+---------------------------------------------+
|Ministerial Coordinator |
|---------------------------------------------|
|Ministerial Services |
|---------------------------------------------|
|Strategy, Governance and Engagement |
|---------------------------------------------|
|Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet |
|---------------------------------------------|
| |
|---------------------------------------------|
|E [1][DPMC request email] |
| |
| |
|---------------------------------------------|
|---------------------------------------------|
|The information contained in this email|
|message is for the attention of the intended|
|recipient only and is not necessarily the|
|official view or communication of the|
|Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.|
|If you are not the intended recipient you|
|must not disclose, copy or distribute this|
|message or the information in it. If you have|
|received this message in error, please|
|destroy the email and notify the sender|
|immediately. |
+---------------------------------------------+
Link: [2]File-List
Link: [3]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [4]themeData
Link: [5]colorSchemeMapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
Link: [6]File-List
Link: [7]Edit-Time-Data
Link: [8]themeData
Link: [9]colorSchemeMapping
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information contained in this email message is for the attention of
the intended recipient only and is not necessarily the official view or
communication of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. If you
are not the intended recipient you must not disclose, copy or distribute
this message or the information in it. If you have received this message
in error, please destroy the email and notify the sender immediately.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[DPMC request email]
2. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
3. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
4. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
5. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
6. file:///tmp/Signature_files/filelist.xml
7. file:///tmp/Signature_files/editdata.mso
8. file:///tmp/Signature_files/themedata.thmx
9. file:///tmp/Signature_files/colorschememapping.xml
hide quoted sections
Things to do with this request
- Add an annotation (to help the requester or others)
- Download a zip file of all correspondence (note: this contains the same information already available above).
News Reader left an annotation ()
Hey John, I’m not too sure if this may help further on this query , but reading https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/teenager-e... , it does appear he was or is the “ Pacific Island representative in the Young Labour Party” . Thus, Im not sure if another OIA route you can take is to check with the Labour Party regarding the “Special Officer” aspect but im not sure if it is applicable as I don’t know if political parties are covered by the OIA act.
Link to this