Career
During World World War II, he was recruited to work for the Kempeitai, the Empire of Japan"s military police. He later served in the Congress of Micronesia, and went into business, through which he amassed a fortune of United States$35 million. He later served as Palau"s chief negotiator on the discussions regarding the Compact of Free Association.
He ran for president of Palau in the 1988 elections, the final elections conducted under a plurality voting system.
He received 26% of the vote, or just 31 votes fewer than the winning candidate Ngiratkel Etpison. The near-tie led elections in Palau to be reformed, and after that they were conducted under majority voting, with a second round if no candidate received more than half of all votes cast.
The resolution stated that "The Roman Tmetuchl International Airport is a fitting name for Palau"s international airport due to Mr. Tmetuchl"s numerous years of valuable services he provided to the Republic and for the assistance he provided in developing the airport.".