June 07, 2013
Taihoa call on Atiawa vote
The chair of a Te Atiawa hapū is calling for the tribe to take more time to consider what its post settlement governance entity will look like.
The Taranaki iwi wants to complete voting on a proposed structure by June 12 so the body can be in place to collect a 20 percent down payment on the $87 million settlement.
But Glen Skipper of Tawhirikura says the design of Te Kotahitanga ō Te Atiawa trust has been rushed and consultation is inadequate.
He says it’s important to get the entity right, because the trust will be set up by act of parliament, making it hard for future generations to alter.
"It we want to change Te Kotahitanga's document we've got to go to parliament so we better get it right now, because to go to an external party and convince them that it's good for us, that’s crazy," Mr Skipper says.
Mr Skipper has won support from more than 60 Te Atiawa kaumatua.
Te Atiawa Iwi Authority Chair Wikitoria Keenan said the trust deed was based on a template from The Office of Treaty Settlements.
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