Departing advisor fearful of 'significant damage' to council, iwi relations

Friday, 14 May 2021

Rārite Mātaki said if he hadn't already resigned from his job at Manawatū District Council, he would have following its stance on Māori wards.

In the wake of a landmark hīkoi advocating for Māori wards and the contentious decision that sparked it, it could be argued the role of Manawatū District Council's Māori adviser has never been more important – except it doesn’t have one.

His last day on the job was Friday, May 7, the day after the council decided to defer a decision on Māori representation until after the 2022 election, and amid a mass resignation of 12 marae from the council’s iwi liaison group as a response.

Rārite Mātaki, 41, had resigned from the council to pursue another job opportunity, and it was by chance he was walking out the door as relations between the council and iwi spiralled south.

However, he said he had warned the council that voting against introducing Māori wards for the 2022 local body elections would be detrimental to its relationship with marae.

Manawatū iwi and supporters' historic hīkoi through Feilding, calling on the Manawatū District Council to reconsider its stance on Māori wards.

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Rārite Mātaki finished in his role as Māori adviser at Manawatū District Council on May 7. His departure coincided with a souring of relations between the council and iwi.

“I’m actually fearful for the council. If this isn’t turned around now, this would do significant damage to the relationship,” he said.

The Manawatū council has a legal obligation in include and promote Māori participation in decision-making. Presently, it has no Māori representatives on the council, no Māori adviser and no iwi group to consult.

Mātaki took part in Tuesday's march on the council building. Had he not already resigned from the council, he would have done so following the 6 to 4 vote recommendation on May 6 to defer a decision on Māori wards, which was supported by mayor Helen Worboys and deputy mayor Michael Ford.

He said he was frustrated by the lack of understanding about Māori wards, saying it only complemented the system that already existed, and was of no consequence for Pākehā.

Marae representatives perform a haka as part of their presentation in favour of Māori wards at the May 6 council meeting.

“Māori are tired of being on the menu, but not at the table, and they will no longer accept being a side dish.”

Mātaki had been the Māori adviser to the council since the role was established in 2018. He responded to councillors’ questions and arranged opportunities for Māori to voice their concerns to the council.

“But I can't force [the council] to listen,” he said. 'That bleeds my heart.”

He said in the past couple of years, many staff and councillors had genuinely changed the way they operated within the council to be more inclusive to Māori, and most had good intentions.

On May 11, over 500 tangata whenua and supporters marched through the town square to the council building.

However, in te ao Māori – the Māori world view – “true intention is indicated through action, and there has been no significant action from [the] council [to help Māori].”

Based on the Māori wards decision, he felt “their intent is not to have us at the table'.

Mayor Helen Worboys said a Māori ward was not the only way to support tangata whenua.

She said Māori were supported by the day-to-day operations of the council, such as giving consent to projects and by establishing the adviser position Mātaki had held.

However, the only significant action Mātaki could recall was a policy adopted in 2018, which promised Māori could contribute to decision-making and would be represented.

The policy was implemented following a citizens-initiated referendum where an overwhelming majority of Manawatū electors voted against a Māori ward.

Mātaki believed the councillors who voted to defer the Māori ward decision cared more about being re-elected than they did about Māori.

Worboys said she had already sent messages to iwi leaders to “extend the olive branch”.

She understood Māori were hurt and believed Mātaki’s criticisms were made with raw emotion. The council’s future relations with iwi would begin by giving them “space to settle down” and reconciliation when marae were ready to sit down with the council.

A notice of motion, brought by councillors Alison Short, Hilary Humphrey, Shane Casey and Phil Marsh revoking the committee’s May 6 decision and instead recommending a Māori ward be introduced, will go before full council on Thursday.