August 04, 2023
New Plymouth Council gets history lesson
New Plymouth Māori ward councillor Te Wakā McLeod says other councillors and council staff seem ready to embrace kaupapa Māori.
On Tuesday the district council had its meeting on Owae Marae in Waitara in a landmark first.
Ms McLeod says she spoke to one local board member afterwards who admitted never having been on a marae before.
“Absolutely loved it, he just raved about the first time being invited into that space. The majority of our councillors have been to a marae but not only did we have our council meeting there, we spent the whole morning with tangata whenua, with mana whenua sharing the narrative of the land wars, the treaty settlements so it was not just a council meeting, it was an injection of history, knowledge, a warm welcome,” she says.
The council is considering holding two meetings a year on marae and iwi are keen to host them.