A former Premier of the Southern Highlands under the old provincial government system, he was a member of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea from 2007 to 2017, representing the electorate of Imbonggu Open.
A Papua New Guinea Party member in his first term, he subsequently switched to the People's National Congress after PNC leader Peter O'Neill became Prime Minister in 2011.
However, in 1995, the system of decentralised provincial government was abolished, and Awesa became deputy governor under national MP Dick Mune.
[1][4] In February 2002, he formed the Southern Highlands Peace Commission in conjunction with bishops Stephen Joseph Reichert and Clarence Kavali in an attempt to end tribal fighting that had resulted in more than 120 deaths, and personally headed the initiative.
[10][11] In September 2008, he was a lone voice of dissent against large government tax breaks for an ExxonMobil natural gas project.
[17] In this role, he was required to deal with fallout from a series of disasters, including the October 2011 Airlines PNG Flight 1600, a fatal January 2011 landslide and the February 2012 sinking of the MV Rabaul Queen.
[27] After the court dismissed Awesa's attempt to have the case thrown out as vexatious, it then shifted the trial from Mendi to Mount Hagen due to threats from his supporters.