Confirmed representatives to date are
Waihao - Gerald Te Kapa Coates
Tūāhuriri - Tutehounuku Korako
Arowhenua - Quentin Hix
Ōraka-Aparima - Stewart Bull
Koukourārata- Elizabeth Cunningham
Makaawhio - Tim Rochford
Ōtākou - Tahu Potiki
Taumutu - Sandy Lockhart
Rāpaki - Wally Stone
Waewae - Lisa Tumahai
Puketeraki - Matapura Ellison
Wairewa - James Daniels
Hokonui - Terry Nicholas
Moeraki - Gail Tipa
Waihōpai - Michael Skerrett
Ōnuku - Ngaire Tainui-Wybrow
Just Awarua and Kaikōura to go
The quality of the alternates is important and we have some very fine people who have put themselves forward to help their iwi. A strong rep and a strong alternate means strong representation at the table and that can only be good for all of us.
4 comments:
Good reps yes! But how they are voted on is more important. Marty, have a look at the voting criteria for Awarua- NT site as an example. Your family have to have been in the takewa for five generations! Is that fair? The elections are a farce. A series of 18 little villages who make little attempt to represent their members, who for good reason have left for largely, economic reasons. Bring back the trust board regional system- at least we can have a degree of confidence that that we are not going to be ripped off by runanga and their own development plans. The gene pool, at Runanga level is simply not there to govern the tribal assets.
By all means fund runanga to keep the home fires burning, but they should not have ultimate control of the assets.
A couple of points worth thought:
-Last year Otakou asked for a legal opinion under the Chair of Tahu Potiki as to whether the assets could be split 18 ways and given to Runanga- the answer was NO- but you can see the way the tribe is heading if Potiki and others have their way.
-O'Regan the Upoko (Chief) at Awarua allowed the the voting system being proposed there, and he was the chief negotiator of the claim- so much for the influence of a Chief.
- Ask members of Wairewa if they are satisfied with their voting. And threats to potential candidates at Rapaki? A challenge to the vote at Puketeraki by Richard Parata might expose other short comings to tribal governance/elections.
It is 14 years on since NT formally received a sort of independence. What have we to show for it? Not much. Whai Rawa- a savings plan - not initiated by Tront, but an idea from the retirement commisioner -costs a lot, 26% of funds compared to 2% of normal pension plans. The plus has been the influence of Mark Solomon at a national level and this should not be underestimated. The minus has been the corrupting influence of Tahu Potiki, siding with a particular arm of the tribal council, to the detriment of NT beneficiaries.
Marty, you can shout about reps - but are they really representative of NT beneficiaries?
Stewart Bull (Oraka/Aparima Runaka) is.
Kia ora puku
You raise some very good points. The criteria and development of each list for registering at each papatipu runaka has been poor at best. I have heard a number of complaints about who is/was on and off and why the decisions were made that way. It is an area that really needs to be tidied up because it goes to the heart of our connection.
Are the reps actual reps for our people? It is a tough question when we know the numbers and the numbers are low. But we have to say yes ultimately because this is the system we have to deal with. I agree the system is flawed and actually doesn't give enough opportunities for participation or representation, and the elections we are still trying to conclude show that. Perhaps the review of the electrol process will show where actual change can be made.
IMO we need ALL Ngai Tahu to be involved in the iwi, we cannot achieve what we want without that. Pathways for strengthening our connection need to be improved.
I am sure the role of rep or alternative is difficult at the best of times. I applaud anyone who stands and gets elected.
Kia ora Marty
Good discussion. Just picking up on the point from Puku about Whai Rawa savings scheme not sure where the 26% cost comes from but I see from the latest statements costs per member are around 60 bucks a year, which is in line with Kiwisaver so not bad really. TRONT pays these costs to help members save for the future and develop the savings habit so hopefully will mean more whanau with more money to take better control of their lives. Whai Rawa have a online survey going til next Wednesday so whanau can have their say. It's a good way to collect feedback cheaply from whanau far and wide and will be interesting to see the results when they come out.
P.S. Loving the new blog design - feel like I'm back on Mars
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