January 31, 2023
Co-governance threatens Māori property right
Māori Party president John Tamihere says Māori need to be careful they don’t get short-changed by co-governance.
The issue of having Maori participating in bodies overseeing health, justice, water infrastructure and other government services is shaping up to be a major election issue.,
Mr Tamihere says in the case of water, issues over ownership and the right to allocate are still before the courts.
“Why should we accept co-governance of a resource that Maori own and are the kaitiaki of? Who said someone could come and take those resources and them pollute them, destroy them, offer all the pumping capacity to offshore corporations? Who said they could do that over the top of us, the owner?” he says.