The motion of no confidence was nominally about a bill adjusting the pay of government officials, but the opposition cited broader concerns with Tabai's economic policy.

[2] Only 17 of 32 members of parliament supported him after the parliamentary election of the same year, and the short-lived opposition party Wiia I-Kiribati was created afterwards.

[3] When it was discovered that parliament had mistakenly tied the salaries of six statutory officers to that of the public service, Tabai's government introduced a bill to fix the discrepancy in December 1982.

[3] Wiia I-Kiribati interpreted Tabai's motion as a threat, implying that they had to support the bill or risk losing their seats.

Their grievances included the costs of a Boeing 747 in the state airline Air Tungaru and the government's subsidies for a shipping corporation.

[3][4] While the elections were pending, the government of Kiribati was run by the Council of State, which included the Speaker of the House, the chairman of the Public Service Commission, and the Chief Justice.

[5] Parliament selected Ieremia Tabai, Teatao Teannaki, Tewareka Tentoa, and Harry Tong as candidates in the election.

Tabai and Teannaki were the same candidates nominated by the government in the previous year's presidential election, while Tentoa and Tong were selected by the opposition.

[5] His family was involved in the private sector in South Tarawa, and he opposed what he felt were unfair advantages that the government exercised when competing with struggling businesses.