November 08, 2023
Ko te anga whakamua: Tātere McLeod
Ko te puāwaitanga o te hunga rangatahi e kaha nei i tō rātou reo Māori tētehi o ngā hua e poho kererū ai a Tātere McLeod i roto i ana tau 13 hei kaiwhakahaere o te reo, te tikanga me te mātauranga ki Ngāti Kahungunu.
Hei te paunga o te tau nei wehe atu ai a McLeod i tana tūranga, ā, i te ata nei i whāki mai ngā mea e toru i tino whakahī rawa atu nei ia. “Tuatahi rā pea, ko te whakatōpū mai a taku iwi o Ngāti Kahungunu nei ki te whakatipu i tētehi ope tauā reo Maori i konei.
“Tuarua, ko te kite i a rātou e puāwai ana, rātou ngā mea rangatahi nei i uru mai ki roto i ā mātou kaupapa. Ināianei kua tū rātou hei kaiārahi i ō rātou hapū, i ō rātou marae, kua whai tūranga mahi nei i Poneke, i Tāmaki, engari e whawhai tonu nei rātou i te reo.
“Tuatoru, ko te mea whakahī katoa au ko, te whakaāe mai a tō mātou matua a Tīmoti Kāretu kei mua a Ngāti Kahunghunu e haere ana, nō te mea iti noa iho nei āna mihi mō tēnei iwi ōna. Nō reira, he mea whakahirahira rawa atu tērā mihi āna.”
E 23 noa iho ōna tau i te wā i riro McLeod i te mahi, ā, hei tāna, he ihu hūpē ia i taua wā. “Engari whakapono mai ngā kuia me ngā koroua o konei, aē, ka taea e te autaia tamaiti nei. Engari kua tino pakeke au i roto i tēnei 13 tau.
“Nā tēnei mahi āku mō Ngāti Kahungunu i tae ai au ki ngā tōpito o te motu, kua whai wheako au i roto i te huhua o ngā kaupapa, kua tū tangata au i roto i te ao Māori i raro i te whakahaere a Ngahiwi Tomoana, ko ia te heamana i te roa o taku noho i reira, engari ko Meka Whaitiri ko ia te CEO i tuku mai i te tūranga ki a au. Mei kore ake a Meka Whaitiri i uru atu ai ahau ki roto i te mahi.”
Hei tā McLeod, ā muri atu i tana wehenga atu i Ngāti Kahungunu Incorporated, ka aro ia ki te kamupene nāna i whakatū i te tau 2020 hei hāpai i te reo me ōna tikanga, ko Kauwaka tōna ingoa. “Ā te mutunga o tēnei tau, ā te 22 o Tihema, tino mutu ai. Kei te whakatūngia mai e taku iwi he poroporākī i a au. Engari māku e kī atu e kore au e tawhiti e te iwi, ka mahi tonu au i te iwi engari he waka kē tēnei e piki nei au, e whakaterea nei.
“Nō reira, e kore au e whakawehe i a au anō i taku iwi. Ka piri tonu au ki a Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated. Ka mahitahi a Kauwaka ki te iwi ki te whakatutuki i te moemoeā nui, ko te whakapūmau i te reo ki koneki nei, ki roto o Kahungunu ki runga i ōna marae, ki waenganui i ōna hapū me ōna whare katoa.”
Ka kī tonu a McLeod ko te kaupapa matua o Kauwaka ko ‘Transformation through language and culture’. Hei tāna, [“Ko ngā] kaiako i ro kura auraki, ngā mea e hiahia ana kia whakapakaritia ō rātou reo, i te whakahaere mātou i Te Pōkaitara, me kī koirā Te Panekiretanga o Ngāti Kahungunu nei, koirā tōna rite. Nō reira ko te reo tonu, engari kua wātea au ināianei ki te whakatipu i tērā kaupapa i a Kauwaka me ana kaimahi 12, me ana kaikirimana e 40 neke atu.”
Tāpiri atu ki tērā, mā te waihangatanga o ngā tūranga mō te reo me ōna tikanga ki Kauwaka e poapoa ai ngā mumu reo ki te hoki ki te kāinga, noho pūmau ai. Hei tā McLeod, “Ko te tino kaupapa o Kauwaka ko te whakawhiwhi mahi ki ngā mea matatau ana i te reo kua puta i ngā kaupapa a te iwi kia kore ai rātou riro ki Pōneke, ki Tāmaki, ki Ōtautahi rānei. Engari kia whai mahi rātou i te kāinga kia tata ki ō rātou marae hei āwhina i ō rātou paepae me ngā āhuatanga katoa.”