Closed minds as settlement options shut down

The co-chair of Te Kotahitanga o Ngā Hapū o Ngāpuhi says the choices over how the tribe could move forward with treaty settlement negotiations may have been misstated.

Preliminary indications are opponents of the evolved mandate may have won the battle of the buses, shuttling supporters around hui to get enough hapū voting against the proposal to shut it down.

Rudy Taylor says he backed the process because he thought after 11 years it was time for some resolution.

But he says rather than considering the options on the ballot that could have given hapū a greater say, people seem to think they were voting against Te Rūnanga o Ngāpuhi and its leaders.

"Some people made their mind up to think about what it means to go forward. Some people decided to say kahore, it means nothing. So there is a bit of confusion out there we have to try and tackle," Mr Taylor says.

The results of the individual and hapū votes won’t be known until after Wednesday, when a panel of kaumātua will go through the provisional votes to determine which ones should be accepted.

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