RNZ Board member Jason Ake quit his Crown role on principle. Photo / Supplied
RNZ Board member Jason Ake quit his Crown role on principle. Photo / Supplied
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Newly appointed Radio New Zealand board member Jason Ake has sensationally quit his Crown role “on principle”, telling board chairman Jim Mather “I’m out”.
Ake, a well known and respected Māori broadcaster and an executive member of the Māori radio iwi network, Te Whakaruruhau, yesterday tendered his resignation to Mather, who is overseas.
Ake - who only joined the RNZ board this month - published a Facebook post on Monday questioning why Kiri Allan was cleared to return to Parliament.
The former journalist also hit out at some of the reaction to her arrest and resignation, saying the sharks were circling while there was blood in the water.
“When there’s blood in the water the sharks circle and they’re more than happy to digest every last morsel and watch the bones sink to the depths. It is a blood sport,” he said.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins entered the debate, saying it was not appropriate for Ake to share his political opinions, given his role on the board of a Crown entity.
Yesterday Mather reminded Ake he must avoid political activities in his new role, saying he would discuss the matter with him directly when back from an overseas trip at the end of the week.
But Ake told the Herald he could not hold back as a “Māori and a member of Te Whakaruruhau” - who advocate for the safety and protection of the Māori language.
“You have to stand on your principles. Stuff it,” Ake said.
“I pretty much contacted Jim, as emails were swirling backwards and forwards, and I just said ‘bro, the nature of what I want to bring to the RNZ Board is around treaty and transformation and that in itself is political by nature’,” Ake said.
“It will always be caught in that landscape without having an opportunity to raise a point when it has to be raised. I told Jim the problem I have got is I sit on Te Whakaruruhau and part of my mandate on that board is to be noisy around political stuff. With the election coming forward, there’s going to be more of this, so I said I’m out.”
Ake said an example of this may be if Act or NZ First releases a broadcasting policy with no Māori component.
“I will be forced to say something about that because I sit on the Te Whakaruruhau executive. I can’t avoid that conversation and I won’t be constrained because I’m on a crown board,” Ake said.
“I can see more troubles happening as the political campaign continues, so I said on that basis Jim I will be a distraction to the work that RNZ needs to do and for me, and I’m not asking your permission but I’m out.”
Former Justice Minister Kiri Allan during Question Time in Parliament, Wellington. Photo / NZME
Ake continued that mental health, like the issues facing former MP Kiri Allan was rife among Māori and talking about this issue is what matters not who it was about.
“Mental health in Māori is a contributing factor to diabetes, heart conditions, obesity and all those issues that kill our people long before they should die,” Ake said.
“When we have those opportunities to have those discussions, we have to have them and not shy away.
“I don’t care whether its a minister or whoever. The issue has been put in the spotlight and allows us to have those open korero among whānau. I’m not bullshitting, on the back of Kiri Allan, we did have that conversation in our house.’
Joseph Los’e joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and prior to joining NZME worked for 12 years for Te Whānau o Waipareira.
