August 02, 2019
Ngāpuhi hapū demanding new mandate
One of the coordinators of hapū hui within Ngāpuhi says the Government needs to rip up the existing negotiating mandate and start again.
Hinerangi Himiona expects between 200 and 300 people will turn up for next weekend’s hui, which will be held in Whangaroa.
It’s the third such hui this year, and she says they show the hapū are learning to work together.
They want a complete different negotiating process than the crown was contemplating under the Tūhoronuku model.
"Not because we just want to be different for the sake of it, but there are so many different things Ngāpuhi have. For instance, the fact we didn't cede sovereignty and we won't be ceding sovereignty and we can't move forward until we address that issue or at least begin talking about it with the crown. We are a very very different iwi to the rest of the settlements that have taken place," Ms Himiona says.
She says the crown has wasted a lot of money telling claimants what they can and cannot do, and now it needs to start listening.
The Ngāpuhi Hapū Wānanga starts at 4pm on Saturday at Otangaroa Marae in Kāeo.
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