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Tera te haeata takiri ana mai ki runga o Hikurangi, karanga ana maranga e oho e te wairua.
Tiaho mai nga hihi a Tamanui te Ra ki runga i nga pa-tuwatawata o te whare o Porou Ariki te Matatara a Whare te Tuhi Mareikura o Rauru raua ko Hamoterangi, kia noho mahana ai te nohotahitanga a nga taina me nga tuakana i raro i te whakaaro kotahi.
Ara whaiuru whaiuru whaiuru ara whaiato whaiato whaiato ara ra tini ara ra tini ara ri.
Tena tatau nga uri o nga maunga whakahi, o nga puke korero, o nga wai kaukau a o tatau matua tipuna taiawhio i to tatau rohe mai i Te Toka a Taiau ki Potikirua.
He kura tangihia he maimai aroha ki o tatau mate huhua, no reira, koutou te iti, te rahi, te whakamataku, takoto marie ki te po.
Kei taku tipuna koka, taku poupou Keita Walker, taku taina a Kapuarangi, hoatu korua ki o taua tipuna. Kei nga tuahine Heni Tawhiwhirangi korua ko Josie Tangaere, haere ki o tatau tipuna, takahia koutou i te huarahi ki te rangi ki runga rawa koutou, okioki atu ki nga mana, ki nga ihi, ki nga tapu e pukai mai i tua o te arai, ki nga Matangireia a o tatau tipuna nui whakaharahara.
Ahakoa kua ngaro koutou i te tirohanga konohi, ka mau tonu i nga whakaaro.
E te Iwi, e te Wiwi, tena tatau katoa.
Anei tatau kei roto i te whanau a Iritekura e wananga ana i nga kaupapa maha i oti i to tatau Runanganui, ona papaku, ona teitei, ona hohonutanga.
The day after our 2017 Hui-a-Tau, we were struck by the news of Heni Tawhiwhirangi’s passing. Heni was a member of the board of the Runanganui and had previously served as a trustee and chief executive of the former Runanga. She was a staunch and passionate advocate for all things Ngati Porou and especially her beloved Waiapu and ‘Wiwi Nati’.
Alhough Heni was immersed in local and national politics; she was not the most adept at the practice of winning friends and influencing people. Heni was direct and, often, brutally so. One could take issue with her style, and there were many who did, myself included, but one could never fault her commitment to the betterment of Ngati Porou. Our tuahine was one of a kind.
In August the Board welcomed the election of our whanaunga, Derek (Tini) Fox, to fill the board vacancy left by Heni. Tini brings a wealth of communication and enterprise skills to the Board, and no small measure of calmness to our deliberations. Nau mai e te tuakana ki to tatau poari o te Runanganui.
The year in review has been one of solid commercial returns, greater control on expenditure, steady progress with our investment in te Reo o Ngati Porou, and our continued support for our marae within the Ngati Porou rohe. The reports from our chief executive, and the chairs of our main subsidiaries, offer our members a more comprehensive summary of the highlights and challenges that comprised the 2017/18 year.
In my report as Chair, I want to reflect on the importance of our relationships with one another, and what these have meant, during the year.
This year we took a significant step forward for the 47 Ngati Porou hapu who, to date, have ratified the new Takutai Moana agreement with the Crown. The new Government introduced a Bill to Parliament which, when passed into law, will give the legal power to the Takutai Moana agreement and the rights of hapu involved. My hope is that those hapu, who are still deciding on whether to join the agreement, will do so in the months ahead.
Since its first reading, the Bill has gone through the parliamentary select committee process. We look forward with confidence to the Bill becoming law in 2019. This work is a testament to the overwhelming majority of Ngati Porou hapu, who have come together and applied their collective strength to safeguard their rights and interests. It also signals a good basis to build a strong and beneficial relationship between Ngati Porou and the Labour-led Government.
Across the Runanganui’s commercial enterprises we have seen new relationships forged around Ngati Porou economic development. In April we signed Air New Zealand’s first-ever partnership accord with an iwi. The accord expresses Air NZ’s commitment to work with Ngati Porou to promote our rohe as a tourism destination, showcase our local produce and engage with local landowners on carbon credits. It is still early days but both parties are excited about the potential of this relationship to grow economic and environmental opportunities for Ngati Porou, and uplift the reputation and mana of both partners.
Ngati Porou Seafoods continues to lead a consortium of iwi fishing interests to make good commercial and sustainable use of iwi fishing resources. This is a major source of the profits we earn from fishing activities. This year, the iwi consortium won the Auckland University-sponsored Outstanding Maori Business Leadership Award. Whether or not we continue to lead the consortium, its foundations and future performance have been set by Ngati Porou and its leadership in the sector.
Similarly, Pakihiroa Farms has looked to increase the scale of its sheep and beef operation by leasing and developing local land blocks with the iwi kainga. Over the next five years these ventures will drive higher returns for the farm operation and iwi kaenga, and help create new on-farm jobs in the district.
The 2017 general election delivered up a Labour-led coalition Government. The new Prime Minister, Rt. Hon Jacinda Adern, visited us in February to open our new social housing units at Te Tini o Porou. During her visit, we took the opportunity to explain some of our highest priorities as an iwi and as East Coast communities. This paid immediate dividends, with the new Government advancing the Nga Rohe Moana o Nga Hapu o Ngati Porou Bill.
We followed this up in August when we hosted the Prime Minister and members of her Cabinet at Te Tini o Porou. We put the need to improve health services to East Coast whanau squarely on the agenda with the Government. Our commitment over the next year is to work with the Ministry of Health and District Health Board to make positive change.
This year we completed the review of the Runanganui’s Trust Deed and in June, held a special vote on the proposed changes to the deed. The process of reviewing the trust deed, brought out tensions about our representation model. Some wanted to see the end of the dedicated noho kaenga seats on the Board, while others pressed to keep those arrangements firmly in place. Both perspectives are valid.
We must develop a strong sense of inclusion which recognises and provides for, the talents and aspirations of the many Ngati Porou who live away from home, and that affirms those who carry the responsibilities of maintaining the lands, marae and practices that make us all who we as Ngati Porou.
Me mihi ka tika ki nga tangata i whakapau werawera, i waha hoki i nga kaupapa a Ngati Porou, ki aku tuakana, tuahine o te poari, ki nga tuahine, tuakana o nga poari i raro i te maru o te Runanganui.
Me mihi hoki ki to tatau Kaihautu ki a H, ki nga kaimahi a te Runanganui me wo tatau whanau e ahuru nei i a tatau, tae atu hoki ki a koutou Ngati Porou.
Ma o mahi ka kitea koe e te Ao e to iwi Maori.
Kia tau te Ia o te Mauri kia tatau katoa.
Selwyn Tanetoa Parata
Chairman
Te Runanganui o Ngati Porou
