Iwi members of Ngāti Paoa have voted to remove the mandate of the Ngāti Paoa Trust Board chaired by Harry Williams and administered by Principal Officer Dave Roebeck.

A vote of ‘No Confidence’ was moved unanimously by the Iwi of Ngāti Paoa against the Trust Board at a Hui-ā-Iwi over the weekend. The Trust Board no longer has the backing of the Iwi to be the representative body for Ngāti Paoa, or, its mandated entity for the Iwi Treaty Settlements.

Iwi member Miria Andrews says she moved the resolution of ‘No Confidence’ in the Trust Board because she was appalled by the behaviour of its Trustees.

“We don’t want Trustees who yell at us, who threaten our rangatahi, who would rather listen to the Crown than their own people. We want Trustees who uphold the mana and integrity of Ngāti Paoa.

“The Trust Board should come back to the people but they don’t. Their mandate comes from us not the Crown, but they keep hiding behind the Crown’s skirt.

“I am deeply concerned about the division that the Crown has created by using our Trust Board to rubber stamp decisions that the people of Ngāti Paoa have not agreed to, or, been consulted on,” says Ms Andrews.

Iwi member Tau Paora-Ngaruhe says he voted against the Trust Board’s mandate because of a lack of reporting and accountablity.

“They have never held a hui on Ngāti Paoa marae. We get no reports, no financial information, and we are not consulted on major decisions.

“Most of the whanau don’t even know who these Trustees are because we have never seen them before, so how can the Crown support them, if we the people don’t?”

Last week, the Trust Board cancelled its Hui-A-Iwi for a second time, however, Iwi members organised their own. It was the largest Hui-ā-Iwi held for some time.

“This time we held the Hui in accordance with our own Ngāti Paoa ‘tikanga’ (traditional customs, protocols and rules), to make sure the Iwi had a voice.

“There is a big question mark over the legitimacy of the Trust Board – who are they? How were they elected? What register did they use? We should be getting answers but they won’t front up to the people,” says Mr Paora-Ngaruhe.

Another Iwi member Lucy Tukua also voted against the Trust Board, because she says it is putting the Ngāti Paoa settlement and Ngāti Paoa whakapapa at risk.

“In my opinion, they are not fit to represent Ngāti Paoa, and I voted against them to protect our settlements and most importantly our whakapapa.

“The Trust Board are saying many of us are not Ngāti Paoa, including my Rawiri whānau. That is non-negotiable and dangerous korero.

“There is a huge concern amongst the Iwi that the Trust Board are being manipulated by Rick Barker (the Crown’s Lead Negotiator) a face-less puppeteer, who is using it to rubber stamp the Marutuahu and Hauraki Settlements as quickly as possible.

“The Trust Board makes decisions without the support of the Iwi and this is why we moved to lay a formal complaint.

“Our people have had enough. It’s clear, the Trust Board no-longer holds the mandate to represent our Iwi and must step aside,” says Ms Tukua.

ENDS

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