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The chair of the Ngapuhi Runanga says it’s time for the tribe to stop spending money on lawyers and come together for a settlement.
Sonny Tau, who also chairs treaty settlement negotiating body Tuhoronuku, is rejecting claims that his roopu lacks a mandate.
He says in fact many hapu who have opposed Tuhoronuku have now come around and appointed kaikorero to take part.
He says while the Waitangi Tribunal is considering a request for a hearing into a claim challenging the process, there is no guarantee urgency will be granted.
"It happened in Tuwharetoa. It happened in Ngati Porou, and the latest it happened in Tuhoe, and these are the same lawyers who took the same questions and I’m sure if you looked at the fine print the wording is word for word as they continue to grind out this thing and the benefit at the end of the day is only to the lawyers," he says.
Mr Tau says Ngapuhi has been working for six years to put Tuhoronuku together, and most of its people are now looking to move forward.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH SONNY TAU CLICK ON THE LINK http://www.waateanews.com/play_podcast?podlink=MTY0NDM=
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