May 23, 2019
Waikato Tainui revisit Tāmaki for Matariki
Waikato Tainui is preparing to host this year’s Matariki Festival in Tāmaki Makaurau in partnership with Auckland Council.
Council coordinator Ataahua Papa says more than 100 events are planned over three weeks celebrating the new year and all things Māori, ranging from large council-organised pou events to smaller community performances, exhibitions and activities.
It’s also a chance to highlight connections and places such as Pukekawa in the Auckland Domain which is one of the places Potatau Te Wherowhero lived before becoming the first Māori king.
"It became part of what they call the Potatau Protectorate. He had a saying 'kia tūpato ki te remu o taku kākahu: beware of trampling the hem of my cloak.' That was his warning to the tribes of the northern region to be careful when they came down to Tāmaki because it was under his protection," Ms Papa says.
People of Waikato Tainui descents have a presence in the super city from Waiuku to Wellsford, so it’s a chance to bring them together under the banner of Matariki.
The full Matariki Festival programme will be released after June 5, when last year’s hosts Te Kawerau a Maki hand over the mauri for the event to Waikato Tainui.
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