May 29, 2015
Congratulations Tainui
Congratulations Tainui
WILLIE JACKSON
The 20th anniversary of the Tainui Settlement was a great occasion for all New Zealanders – Maori and Pakeha alike.
Because on May 22, 1995, we actually stood up as one nation.
There are many milestones in our history where we celebrate with pride and admiration. Take Waitangi Day and Anzac Day for instance.
But May 22, date should also be one of those days etched into the New Zealand psyche because while the great unwashed and uneducated will claim that was the day the Waitangi Treaty Settlements flood gates opened, for Maori it was a day where the Crown finally righted some wrongs and took ownership.
And though there are still a few iwi in consultation and conflict with the Crown over Treaty of Waitangi Settlements, the signing by Tainui and then Ngai Tahu has clearly been a win-win situation and a way forward.
When the Crown, led by then National Party leader Prime Minister Jim Bolger and the late Maori Queen, Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu signed the Waikato Raupatu Deed of Settlement, we created history and also wrote our future.
It has been well documented that Tainui initially made some bad investments and acted like kids given a key to the candy shop. There was silly spending and every time that happened, the good old pakeha media hacks would bemoan why did we trust Maori with all that money?
But check out the Tainui-Waikato balance sheet now and you will see wise investments have been made, their future is secured and that initial $170 million settlement package has increased almost ten-fold.
The same for Ngai Tahu, who have made the most of their windfall under astute financial management of the likes of Sir Tipene O’Regan and Sir Mark Solomon. We are talking billion dollar corporations now.
I watched the 20 year Anniversary celebrations on TV and marveled at the respect shown by both sides.
Treaty Settlements were once viewed as a way of appeasing Maori by those born of ignorance.
But they are now viewed as a tangible way of fiscally righting wrongs inflicted on Maori.
So in saying that, we should also acknowledge the work of the RT Honorable Bolger and also the then Justice Minister Doug Graham. They went against the political climate of the day in a bid to find some settlement middle ground and move us on as a nation.
While this column is about congratulating Tainui and Ngai Tahu, as an Urban Maori, I’m also disappointed some of that money has not found its way into Tainui and Ngai Tahu whanau who live in the cities.
For me that is an on-going issue and one Iwi need to address.
Tune in to Radio Waatea every Monday from 10am to Paakiwaha current affairs from a Maori perspective with Willie Jackson
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