90 Percent of Submissions To Super City Select Committee Support Maori Seats

Auckland Maori tribal leaders presented a united front when calling on Prime Minister John Key and Local Government Minister Rodney Hide to reconsider Maori seats on the proposed Super City Council at a meeting yesterday hosted by Minister of Maori Affairs Pita Sharples.

The leaders said support for the seats is gaining significant traction within the wider community and the moment is right for translating a stronger relationship with Maori into realistic representation.

This stance was supported by comment made at the meeting that 90 percent of submitters to the select committee considering the Auckland Super City legislation were in favour of Maori seats on the resulting council.

Ngati Whatua o Orakei Maori Trust Board Chairman Grant Hawke said ‘first past the post’ in local government had not delivered councils that reflected the societies they served. However more balanced representation had been achieved in central government.

Mr Hawke said he was interested to hear the Prime Minister say that Parliament now better reflected society and that MMP had produced a real ‘House of Representatives’.

Tainui chairman Tuku Morgan urged the Prime Minister to continue building the relationship with Maori that was boosted by its agreement with the Maori Party.

“We appreciate the attention the Prime Minister is giving this issue. The meetings we have been having have been constructive. We are, after all, sensible people wanting the best for this country and the people who live within it. What we have is an opportunity to do things differently to how they have been done in the past. That offers many positive outcomes.”

He reinforced the call for Maori representation in Auckland at all political levels including council seats as well as advisory boards and major committees.

During the meeting the Prime Minister was reminded of the contributions Maori made to establish the city and how they continued to support it. Both Ngati Whatua and Tainui have significant commercial holdings in Auckland and are becoming increasingly important players in the city’s economy.

The leaders also pointed to the fact that the streets of Auckland were recently filled with thousands of people marching in favour of Maori seats on the coldest and wettest day of the year.

“Many who joined the Super City hikoi were not Maori showing that Auckland is maturing and is more than ready to move to a thriving multi-cultural and inclusive city. It’s this kind of city, with soul and cultural depth, that must be shown off to the world come rugby world cup time and beyond,” says Grant Hawke.