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Download AudioNew Zealand First politician Shane Jones says members of a Northland hapū shouldn’t hold the economic development of the region hostage.
A group claiming to represent Te Waiariki, Ngāti Kororā, and Ngāti Takapari hapū is trying to block the filming of Hollywood star Jason Momoa’s series Yenedakine: Chief of War at Nukurārangi near the Whangarei Heads because of what is says is the cultural significance of the land and foreshore.
Mr Jones says it’s the sort of objection that seems to be raised whenever a big star comes to a rural area.
He says the north needs every bit of economic activity or outside investment it can get.
“We can’t operate as an island unto ourselves. The Waiariki hapū recently recovered some land if I’m not mistaken around Pataua South, but I take a dim view of a tiny minority wanting to quash the prospects of economic activity that has a broader positive impact on the wider community,” Mr Jones says.
He says the Nukurārangi area is no stranger to conflict, including the effects of colonial settlement on the landscape, so people should not try to reinvent history.
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