During this period he served as Minister for Culture and Tourism under Prime Minister Michael Somare.
This time, a successful parliamentary motion of no confidence brought down the government of Acting Prime Minister Sam Abal (standing in for Sir Michael Somare while the latter was hospitalised for a serious heart condition), and Peter O'Neill became Prime Minister.
In May 2010, he was appointed Attorney General and Minister of Justice in Prime Minister Michael Somare's Cabinet, replacing Allan Marat who had resigned after breaching Cabinet solidarity by criticising government policy.
Elected as an independent, he then joined the National Alliance Party and was appointed deputy Minister for Education by Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare.
His ministerial appointment was rescinded under the disbanding of the Michael Somare government in August 2011, but Potape was reinstated as Minister of Petroleum and Energy in December 2011, replacing then Minister, William Duma.
Initially a government backbencher, he withdrew his support from Sir Michael Somare's coalition government in June 2010, in protest over amendments to the Environment Act, which he said had been undemocratically "bulldozed through Parliament".
In April 2009, The Guardian described him as one of Papua New Guinea's "living national icons", along with politician Michael Somare and philosopher Bernard Narokobi.
He was re-elected in 2007 for a second term of Parliament as Minister for National Planning and District Development, but lost his portfolio in August 2011 when a defection of MPs saw the government of Michael Somare disbanded.
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He was later appointed Trade and Industry Minister on 12 November 2003 and served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade between 2005 and 2007 under then Prime Minister Michael Somare.
Michael Somare Junior, the son of Sir Michael Somare was arrested in December 2010, for the attempted murder of Peter Waranaka.
In December 2011, Sir Salamo Injia was one of five judges who presided over the Supreme Court decision that ruled that Prime Minister O'Neill did not follow due constitutional process when he ousted former Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare on 2 August 2011.
In the 2002 general reelection, Akoitai retained his parliamentary seat, and was appointed Minister responsible for Mining, Environment, Conservation and Correctional Institution Services by Prime Minister Michael Somare.
1972 elections saw the formation of a ministry headed by Chief Minister Michael Somare, who pledged to lead PNG to self-government and then to independence.
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In April 2009, The Guardian described him as one of Papua New Guinea's "living national icons", along with Michael Somare and Mal Michael.
In August 2011, Peter O'Neill became Prime Minister in the wake of a parliamentary motion of no confidence in the government of Acting Prime Minister Sam Abal (standing in for Sir Michael Somare while the latter was hospitalised for a heart condition).
The mutiny was related to a dispute over the prime ministership between Sir Michael Somare and Peter O'Neill which had begun in December 2011 when the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea ordered that Somare be reinstated as the prime minister while the county's parliament supported O'Neill.