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For services to Māori, governance and the community Dr Taku Parai will be an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit
Dr Taku Parai (Ngāti Toa, Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Tama) is a Ngāti Toa kaumatua who has contributed to the Porirua community for more than 50 years, including as mana whenua representative to Porirua City Council since 1999. Dr Parai has held numerous roles for his iwi, chairing the Ngāti Toa Kaunihera Kaumatua and contributing to preservation of histories and genealogies, wananga waka and wananga reo. He chaired the Board of Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira for six years, overseeing the Treaty settlement and the immediate post-settlement period. He chaired Porirua Council’s Treaty Partnership Group from 2002 to 2010 and has been Council Kaumatua since 2011. He has presided over hundreds of cultural occasions, including blessing the pou and city centre in 2019 when it was renamed Te Manawa as a gift from Ngāti Toa. He has provided leadership on the Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour and Catchment Joint Committee since 2013, implementing the Porirua Harbour and Catchment Strategy and Action Plan. He has regularly organised pōwhiri and Māori culture teaching sessions for Council staff and people newly resident in the Porirua area. He has been an advisor and kaumatua for Tu Ora Compass Health for more than 20 years. Dr Parai has held various advisory and committee roles with local organisations including Women’s Refuge, Porirua RSA, the Royal New Zealand Police College, sports clubs and various primary and secondary schools.
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