Career
He has a Bachelor"s decree in Accounting, and served as governor of his country"s Central Bank "for more than 15 years" before becoming Senior Advisor to the Executive Director of the World Bank, and then going into politics. The Solomon Times described him as "one of the key public figures in the Solomon Islands whose credibility is intact, if not enhanced, after resisting corruption and several attempts by fraudsters to bankrupt the nation during the ethnic conflict" of the early 2000s. The magazine Islands Business named him "Manitoba of the Year" for the Pacific region in 2003, at a time when he was Governor of the Central Bank.
American Broadcasting Company Radio"s Sean Dorney described him in 2011 as a critic of excessive exploitation of the country"s forests, a modest man who had shown "strength over the years in standing up to those who have exploited the country.
The latter was appointed Minister for Public Service. In early November 2011, several ministers joined or rejoined the Opposition, ultimately bringing down the government.
On November 9, three ministers returned to the Opposition. The following day, Rick Hou joined them, and the day after that Philip sacked Finance Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo, reportedly for conspiring with the Opposition.
Hours later, Philip announced his own resignation, as he clearly no longer had the numbers with which to govern.
On November 16, Parliament chose Lilo to replace him. Lilo appointed Hou as his Minister for Finance. Upon his appointment, Houenipwela told the Solomon Star he would seek to exempt "low paid workers" from paying tax, while also "lower the tax rates to enable companies to be profitable".
There would be increased government support and investment in "productive sectors", including agriculture, tourism and fisheries.
He stated that he would refuse his own tax exemption.