Kaiwhakahaere Report
April 2009
The Kaiwhakahaere report has, for many years, consisted of a record of meetings I have attended. Recent discussions amongst Ngāi Tahu Whānui have laid very clear challenges to increase the accountability and transparency of Te Rūnanga and I believe it is important to respond by increasing the amount of information available to tribal members. I intend that moving forward the monthly Kaiwhakahaere Report will report in a more detailed way on the activities that I am involved and be distributed through our tribal networks.
For Ngāi Tahu as an iwi, the last month has been both challenging and rewarding. As Kaiwhakahaere, I have attended three hui with Ngāi Tahu Whānui and had discussions with many tribal members. Many Te Rūnanga Representatives have also attended these hui, and I expect had similar discussions with whānau at their Rūnanga. I have consistently heard very clear, very strong messages on the expectations of Ngāi Tahu Whānui of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu and I believe it is now Te Rūnanga's responsibility to meet these challenges.
Te Rūnanga, as an entity and through the individual Representatives, must improve how we report to our people. One of the strongest messages delivered by our people over the past month is that there is not enough information on what the iwi authority is doing, day to day, and the decisions that Te Rūnanga is making at the table. This report is one response and there are more improvements that need to be made. Te Rūnanga will, from now on, more carefully assess whether information needs to stay In Committee. We will also distribute a summary report on each meeting to all Papatipu Rūnanga and load it on our website.
It is not enough however, to simply report on the activities of the iwi authority. Te Rūnanga must also listen more effectively to the requests of Papatipu Rūnanga and Ngāi Tahu Whānui. To be able to do so, we need to come together as Ngāi Tahu more regularly to discuss tribal matters – so we all understand our aspirations and expectations for the iwi. The last month has been rewarding because I believe it has provided us the impetus and drive to have these discussions. This drive is exactly what we need to meet the challenges that threaten to harm the future of Ngāi Tahu. This strength of opinion and passion can only serve to further strengthen the foundations of who we are as Ngāi Tahu, and what we want for our collective future.
As Kaiwhakahaere, I have also been heavily involved in work programmes driven by the new government. The government is moving into their second 100 day period with a series of summits on matters of national importance. I have attended the Prime Ministers' Job Summit, the Minister of Māori Affairs Drivers of Crime Summit, and the Deputy Kaiwhakahaere attended the Minister of Māori Affairs Māori Economic Development hui. I think these summits have been very valuable, as they have brought many varied people, stakeholders and government together to talk in an open way about real issues. The test however, will be whether the discussions translate into real, practical work programmes driven by government and supported by Māori and the wider community.
One set of work programmes being developed is on Māori Economic Development under the Minister of Māori Affairs Ministerial Taskforce, that I am pleased to be a member of. My responsibility is to design work to support the better utilisation of Māori assets and I look forward to reporting on the progress of this work stream over coming months.
I have also been progressing our advocacy on freshwater. A number of Iwi Leaders recently met with the Prime Minister to reconfirm that the Treaty of Waitangi is the basis on which freshwater discussions should be had between Iwi and the Crown. This work will pick up pace over the next few months as the government starts their freshwater programme to address the management and allocation of water.
What seems to be consistent across Ngāi Tahu, and the nation, is the drive toward building a stronger common vision and the importance of building and maintaining relationships. The coming months require of us an investment and commitment to strengthening our relationships in terms of time and resources - both amongst ourselves and with the wider public. I am confident that Ngāi Tahu will be all the stronger for the challenging weeks we have just had, and the coming months it will take to institute the improvements that we need to make.