NGATI KAHU- A FISHY STORY-OR IS IT THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY?

Getting the fish putea as an outcome of "The Sealords Deal" is a story in itself led by Rt.Hon. Matiu Rata who made the claim before the Waitangi Tribunal back in the day. The Crown (Government) had as a sustainable management of the fishery quota-rized the fishing catch and divided the sea off Aotearoa into fishing areas. Matiu won a landmark decision by challenging the Crown's title to the quotas of snapper and other species. After winning a proportion of the quota it was then up to Iwi Maori to manage their portion which they did under "Te Ohu Kai Moana." The series of hui then began around the country to deal with the allocation. 

Te Hiku O Te Ika or the Far North or five tribes sorted their allocation simply by dividing by five to avoid any silly territorial squabbles. Ngati Kahu received a fifth of the Hiku total quota and shares in Te Ohu Kai Moana. That is how Ngati Kahu got its quota which it leases and its share dividends as a shareholder in those TOKM fishing companies. So the money comes from this source. Te Runanga A Iwi O Ngati Kahu is the administrator of these assets. When I held the fisheries portfolio for the Runanga we allocated all the proceeds (money) to the 12 marae of Ngati Kahu equally, ie we divided the money by 12. 

After some years the Runanga took a percentage for administration which by then was administered by Tipene Herewini of Patukoraha. This was fair enough. However that proportion went up to half which was gross and by 2013 the Runanga took the lot. Also long before then the number of marae increased by two to 14. "Karikari" and "Werowero" were not marae according to the criteria set out by Makari Matiu and Waitonga Marsh for the Ngati Kahu Trust Board's membership inherited by the Runanga. That criteria was an existing and operating marae, and marae existing within the life time of our Kaumatua and Kuia informants at the time (1980s). These included Waitetoki, Okakewai and Mangataiore.

After speaking to Sonny Tomars at Werowero prior to his death he maintained that the cheques he received went back to the Runanga. However "Karikari" has a bank account and as of this year they have acquired over $80k. This has been acquired through constitutional fraud and needs to be investigated. The Runanga's constitution recognises these two non-existent marae. Their rules then say that allocation of this putea  is by democratic vote of the delegates to their hui regardless of what marae people think. 

Three marae to my knowledge voted no to their putea being given to the Runanga in this way. They were out voted by the others. The tikanga is that the assets and quota belong to the original 12 marae and it is up to them as to what they do with their putea. It's theirs not the Runangas.The Runanga as Administrator and not Owner are entitled to a proportion only for administration. "Karikari's" proportion is acquired by fraud.

So that's the fishy story. 

Haititaimarangai Marae DIY

CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE

Our young women were to the fore not only in the wharekai
but outside doing the gardens.

The TV Programme was the last of this AIA Marae DIY Series and was on Wednesday 14th August 2013. By now this photograph taken from a cherry picker by a brave and skilled photographer is at least world famous in Patia O Matariki where our now beautiful marae is situated. As the kaumatua involved I have many thoughts and memories. In 1979-80 during the setting up of the Haititaimarangai Ahu Whenua Trust the vision was actually of a new marae at the old Rangiawhia school site at the end of Whatuwhiwhi Rd that goes past this marae. However the money reeceived from the logs didnot stretch to a deposit for a new marae and so with the Marae Trustees and Ngati Kahu Ahuwhenua Trust we all three combined financially ($75K) to fund the four days with the assistance of AIA sponsors, and for our marae project manager Shane Horan completing a lot of work prior to the DIY, we were able to get it done, plus Shane and the group completed the flooring and bits and pieces left over. For our marae this has to be the greatest event since the whare was shifted to Patia from Waiari in 1952.

It wasn't all work; the visionaries needed time
to review progress.

We even managed an ANZAC Service on the second day of the DIY to honour those from this marae who served in the wars of WW1, WW2, Korea, Malaya-Borneo, Vietnam and peace keeping operations in the Middle East. A flag pole was erected that night and a flag was found by Timoti Hetaraka from somewhere. A former Commanding Officer Rev. Stanley Pilbrow officiated with the Army Engineers who took part in the DIY as the Guard of Honour. Sgnt Horiana Rupapera served in the 28 Maori Battalion in WW2. This marae has a long list of soldiers who served.



In WW1 these were; Hamuera Rupapera: Peretiti Hetaraka Heta:         Hurae Hetaraka; Ihaka Hopa or Hopa Riwhi:
WW2: Horiana Rupapera, Mu Hetaraka, Raniera Matiu, and Ranga Raharuhi who was killed in action in Crete.

Note: I have also taken these names from the Rangiawhia Native School records where these soldiers went to school.

Other Highlights: All the mahi done by the kai mahi who in such a short time accomplished so much; the arrival of the waka arranged by Niki Tauhara and the Tohunga Tauira to name and dedicate the taonga and waha roa, Te Ori Paki and his TV crew, our Whaea Pere, Roharia, Paula, and Meri whose presense gave so much to the mana of the DIY endeavour, and so much more. There's too many to give accolades to but all those from outside the hou kainga who came from a long way to contribute, Awhi the chief chef who in difficult circumstances kept the kai coming, Richard and all his earth movers, Sana and her ladscaping skills, and if nobody minds I pay speciaL tribute to Wyvern.

Nga mihi kia koutou katoa i mauria mai o kaha, o hiahia, o ngakaunui me o ringaringa ki tenei mahi.

Tihei Mauriora.

Ngati Kahu Lost Appeal Court Case v FNDC/Carrington Farms Ltd.

Well its official. It's repertitious stuff but it happened like this:

Ngati Kahu objected to a resource consent for 12 sections on Carrington Farms Ltd property overlooking Karikari Bay. They maintained that;

1. It was close to Te Ana O Taite burial cave (that's their words. The correct name is Taitehe who was a Te Whanau Moana tupuna)

2. They had a signed agreement with Carrington Farms for consultation. While they did have this, the tangata whenua (Te Rorohuri) were sidelined in this agreement.

The Runanga appeared at the FNDC Review Panel at Kaikohe and lost.

They then went to the Environment Court at Paihia and lost there.

They then took it to the High Court and "won" in Whangarei. That Court thought the "agreement" with C Farms was relevant.

Then the other litigants contested the High Court's decision and of course won. The Appeal Court found that:

• The resource consent in dispute was upheld
• The Runanga was liable for the costs of the litigation.

The consequences for Ngati Kahu are humungus (pardon my spelling) especially the costs of this litigation if we are taken to the cleaners. All Ngati Kahu's assets such as their Fishing Settlement Assets, the Taipa Farm, and any cash held by the Runanga could be under threat. This also applies to the assets and money held by Marae members not to mention individuals who made those decisions on behalf of Ngati Kahu. That's the worst case scenario.

The alternative is that saner heads in Ngati Kahu get together under their Hapu banner and negotiate with FNDC/Carrington Farms Ltd to aleviate the costs to Ngati Kahu and reduce the exposure of our Marae and individuals. 

We should also challenge the Runanga's mandate to negotiate our Treaty claim. Their credibility is shot to pieces. In fact resignations are in order.  So, briefly then our objective is to:

• Reduce the financial fall out from this litigation by negotiation.
• Get back on track with our Treaty claims.
• Plan for a post Treaty settlement.

I don't want Ngati Kahu to think that all is lost. It's far from that but then it's up to us and our Hapu now.

Nga mihi kia tatou katoa.

Atihana

Bits And Pieces

Kia Ora: This is bits of fictional attempts at trying to draw fictional characters. I am a fan of Kurt Vonegutt but with none of his black humour. Anyway here goes;

1

She looked like a toad when she was drunk; her head and neck sunk into a wide torso. She waddled around looking for a chair to flop into and sleep. Good. The rest of us could enjoy our beer. I don’t know why she drank, especially since her husband Alf died last year. He drank and she mainly ate. That’s what killed him prematurely. And it will surely kill her if someone didn’t take her in hand. But, who would? No one else was that lonely.

2

My cousin Flora bought a car before she got a drivers’ license. She thought it came with the car in the glove box, and anyway if she could drive a Fergusson tractor on the farm, how hard is a car? She reversed the tractor over her husband and killed him. It was an accident but she sold the farm and set herself up in town; house, car and all. But, she still had no driver’s license. I talked Flora into hiring a driving instructor. After the first lesson he refused to take her on again. He changed his mind when I told him that at 35 she was very well off financially and if he was still single, well…….She was attractive too; not slim but comely. He was back the next day and gritted his teeth for a week, one dead cat, a squashed dust bin, many near misses and the rear lights shattered, later. She got her license, fell in love with the Instructor and they married. After a month of bliss she caught him in bed with another much younger learner-driver. She backed over him in the drive way, and he died later. It was an accident.

3

I had another cousin called Waimarama. She was as beautiful as her name; slim, rounded in the right places and so on. Most heads turned when she walked into a room. For men it was with admiration and for women, with envy. She had one defect. Her physical brightness was personal not intellectual. On dates she had nothing much to say and apart from a wide, warm smile and girly giggle contributed nothing else to discourse. Even in bed they say she had little more life than a corpse and contributed nothing except a body. Everything was done for her. Anyway, Joe persevered with her mainly because he reveled in the impact that a beautiful young woman had on other men as he accompanied her into the pub, on the street, or at socials. At dances she had few moves. They moved in together and from all accounts Joe was the happiest of men. Anyway, one day neighbours heard Joe screaming with fear and pain. The police were called and they broke in. Joe was dead by then. She still held the knife and there was blood all over the bed and room. She sat there smiling and giggling. The knife was pried from her hands and she was taken by the police to the cells. In court she looked so beautiful people were stunned and forgot about the victim. When the Judge asked how she pleaded she said she did it because Joe had used up all the shampoo. And could she please have some in the cell? She said all this with a devastating smile and not a hint of evil. Everyone in that court nodded and agreed with her. Joe? Who was he again?

4

That’s enough about my whanau. I’m sure other people have cousins equally sane. What about George whom we called Hori? He was only a distant cousin; my wife’s uncle to be precise. Hori was the ultimate optimist. He’d wake early look out the window and it didn’t matter what he saw. If it was raining he knew the grass would grow. If the sun shone his lawn mowing business would do well. The more often the sun shone, the more he knew he’d sell more ice cream from his Tip Top van by the popular Onema Beach in summer. Life for him was buoyed by optimism and nothing could go wrong. He had fingers in many enterprises and he darted from one to the other. There just wasn’t anything he couldn’t turn his hand to. Neither could he turn down an opportunity. One came along in the form of a cyclone that bowled over some beach front houses at Te Onema. He was part owner of a demolition business with a mate Jackson and they got the contract to demolish and take away the debris of one house. The house was well built but the cyclone tore it to shreds. As they removed the layers of debris they carted it off a truck load at a time to their yard to sort later. Hori did most of the supervising and stood aside from the grabbers and diggers. Soon nothing was left. The workers and Jackson disappeared to the yard along with their machinery on a large truck. Hori was left to do a final inspection. In the middle of the empty section he stumbled over the lid of a metal box. These days you will find Hori tending the vines in his own vineyard in the wine country of NSW, Australia.

Hariru Wikitoria (How-de-doo Queen Victoria)

This is a poem I have penned as a submission to the Constitution discussion currently under way:

Hariru Wikitoria

We salute you Queen Victoria

For giving us  Treaty

In 1840 at Waitangi

We said we wanted chieftainship

You helped yourself  to sovereignty

We gave you dark shadow

Cast down by  cloud

We kept the substance under foot

Or so we thought

We put moko to paper

Crosses and names

On Hobson’s wax sealed parchment

From Kaitaia to Greenstone Land

And the deed was surely done

Or so we thought.

God’s people in missions

Pre 1840 Treaty

Turned us from war

Blamed Satan for  guns

And all those flu,

measles and other pandemics

Were wrath of God not Pakeha

So pray and pray

And pray ehoa

For Christian immunity

Or so we thought.

Soon substance under  foot

Became theirs not ours

They squared our land

Surveyor did

And kept huge pieces

Bits reserved for us.

Their mana cleansed it clean

Of   indigenous Native

Replaced by Hegemony, 

Colonisation, Legislation, 

And hoha Civilization

Or so they thought

Taihoa Maori taihoa ra

Wikitoria gave you good

Like justice, law and order

Now let’s you claim

For all wrongs done

Since 1840 aye

So;

Before the cut off point is reached

Get your wai  to Waitangi

Tribunal don’t be late.

They need to scrub and clear the decks

For newest constitution

Clear Wikitoria from history

And them from perjury.

Aue!

Justice has a cut off point?

And Treaties dates used by?

Like sausages and milk

And all things  perishing

On Supermarket shelves?

So;

Before they cut you off our Queen

And backdoor this Republic

Your sovereignty was but shadow

And chiefs  mere  noughts and crosses

On ragged Treaty parchment

Therefore;

Worry not for whom clock chimes

You Maori get in line

Clock tick tocks to the future 

Amnesia is the past

The jingles are the $$$

They’re not for you, e hoa

  

But

One law for all and all for one

Republic here we come

Before more Asians come and come

And take majority.

That’s what  I  think.

Atihana M. Johns

Maori Politics And Ikaroa-Rawhiti

To begin with it is going to be hard to fill the footprints left by Horomia. That man was everywhere and not only in his own rohe. I had the privilege of meeting him in the Far North, Wellington, and Auckland. Who ever takes his place need not try to emulate him but the fact is he has set for them some high expectations in that electorate especially for the Labour candidate who has yet to be chosen (25th May 2013). I used to be a member of Labour and active in the 1960s. By the 1970s I was a more passsive member.

Back then Labour Maori candidates during first past the post were chosen by the Maori Policy Committee of the party. Being rather too keen and naive I thought that it's main job was Maori Policy formation like its name said. This was true for the most part but I was at that time caught up in the selection process of choosing a successor to Mrs. Iriaka Ratana who was retiring. It turned out that the Chairman of this policy committee had a big say as to who that successor was and the Chairman Mr. Ralph Love was away in South Africa on Rugby Union business! The two leading Maori Labour MPs then involved the committee in a huge wrangle over the selection of the Chair. Two meetings lasted until midnight with no result but in the last meeting, by midnight the committee kicked the ball to the Labour Executive and finally under Whetu Tirikatene's leadership we started writing our committees report for the next morning to present to the Conference. And completed it by 3am.

The next morning early, we were running our report off the Gestetner and stapling it ready. By that time Ralph came back from South Africa and presented it. That was good old fashioned Labour. I remember looking around at the activity in the Gestetner room and saying out loud; "There's no doubt about us Maori. We are only good with our hands." We had a good laugh, but I felt this huge hand on my shoulder. It was Norm Kirk who said; "That's not true, mate." Koro Wetere was the successful candidate. How he was selected I don't know but I think he was the incumbent's choice.

I see now that Labour has to choose from six candidates and three meetings. Wow. Times have changed. So has my politics. But I hope Labour picks someone they can all support. As far as their opposition is concerned, I don't know Raihania for the the Maori Party. Hamua is a good choice for Mana and his appeal will be to the rangatahi. He has to get them off their butts to vote. I wish them all the best.

The Ninga Invasion Of Tuhoe

The Independent Inquiry of the Urewera Raids in 2006 have finally concluded and in doing so have  applied spots of black in their white wash of the police actions against mainly but not only Tuhoe. They concluded that such actions as the road blocks, photographing and taking the names of innocent people going on about their lawful business like taking children to Kohanga Reo were "illegal" which is a kinder word for "criminal". Anyone who did the same would be jailed quick smart. Think what would happen if you confined a child to a room without access to a toilet and you had that ridiculous Ninga outfit copied from American TV shows, dark glasses and a gun. A child wouldn't know which planet you came from.

www.maortelevision.com/news/national/ipca-recommendation

www.maoritelevision.com/news/regional/harawira-calls-police-commisioner-resign

The report says that road blocks and the manner in which the police conducted themselves etc were illegal. In fact that word is apparently repeated a number of times. But it's rather like buying a car from second hand dealer Min.Justice Car Dealers and saying it's a good car even though the gear box and the radiator is missing. The report maintains that the reason for the raid is OK but like the car, a few things were not right. It's odd really. The top brass who organised the "Urewera Raid" must surely have spelt out to the Ningas in detail what they were to do; ie block the road at the aukati  line that separates Tuhoe from land confiscated off them in the 19th Century, photograph people, and do other illegal things. They were following orders not using their initiative.

What should happen now? Well an inquiry should be widened to do the following;

1. Who were the top brass responsible for ordering what turned out to be illegal? (With a view to dismissing, demoting or charging them for ordering those "illegals.") The Big Kahuna however is already gone.

2. A thorough review of what happened to the innocent victims children and adults and giving them their "day in Court."

3. Compensation for sure to fix damage to property like broken doors bashed down in order to gain illegal entry. And some acknowledgement and assistance for the victims.

4.  An inquiry into the extent to which the SIS or GCSB were involved in gathering information for the raid. The then Minister of Police Annette King says Ministers are not involved in police raids but the PM responsible for Security Intelligence may have known.

These boys were locked in a shed by the Ningas 

while they illegally searched the house. As you can

see they are Tuhoe. 

Let's hope that no more such armed raids are ever contemplated again against any group. It does seem that we are developing far right paranoia similar what what is daily spewed out by "Fox TV."