August 11, 2022
Putting moko on face of local government
An Opotiki district councillor says Māori should see the creation of Māori wards or constituencies by 35 local bodies as a golden opportunity to get involved in setting the future direction of their communities.
Nominations for this year’s local body elections close at noon tomorrow.
Louis Rāpihana is standing for council a second time, and he’s also put his hand up for the mayoralty.
He says in the past a Māori with a full facial taamoko would have no chance of being elected, but times have changed and he hopes to inspire by example.
“The amount of whanaunga I have who have seen the mahi that has been happening in local government through all the postings I do to promote the work, they’ve considered putting their hands up so I’ve walked them through the process, getting them to fill in their nomination form, get their fee in and let’s do the do,” he says.
Mr Rapihana says the other challenge is getting Māori out to vote.