Wananga backdown hands purse-strings to manager

Te Wananga O Aotearoa has relented in its stand-off with the Government and will hand over control of its finances to a Crown manager.

It is understood the Government's tactic of preventing the wananga from accessing overdraft and borrowing facilities unless it agreed to the manager created enough financial pressure to convince the troubled tertiary institute to back down.

It is believed the wananga would have been in serious financial risk and might have become insolvent had it been denied the banking access.

But yesterday Education Minister Trevor Mallard would not guarantee that the wananga's overdraft and borrowing facilities would be restored, saying it was a matter for the Secretary of Education and the Crown manager to decide.

Wananga chief executive Rongo Wetere will this morning meet Mr Mallard's advisers to discuss the Crown manager's role.

Just hours before the surprise concession to the Government's terms, Mr Wetere was publicly attacking Mr Mallard at the Hui Taumata in Wellington, labelling him a hostile minister who had "lost the plot". "He is trying to send us [Maori] back 100 years."

Mr Wetere then met Maori Affairs Minister Parekura Horomia and Labour MP John Tamihere, who counselled him for over an hour about his refusal to accept the Crown manager.

On Tuesday Mr Wetere had effectively said he would allow the wananga to go under rather than concede financial control to the Crown.

Mr Tamihere said Mr Wetere had been deeply hurt by the numerous allegations about him, his family and the wananga.

He said Mr Wetere was now finding it difficult living in the small community of Te Awamutu, where people were crossing the road to avoid him since the allegations had surfaced.

They talked this through and discussed how it was unfair to punish the students and staff of the wananga.

Mr Wetere last night told the Herald he changed his mind about the Crown manager in an attempt to "de-escalate" the situation.

He said it was inevitable that the financial constraints the Government had placed on the wananga would lead to problems and that the wananga could not hold out against the Government.

"And besides which most staff and students across the country were feeling very threatened over the situation and we couldn't allow that to go on."

Mr Wetere said he was confident the Auditor-General's report would clear him.

"Those allegations need to be addressed so I can walk straight up and down and I'm sure I will be."

He said it was a relief to have made a decision that allowed the wananga to move forward.

"I can sleep easy tonight, there hasn't been much sleep the other nights."

Mr Mallard said the Crown manager, Brian Roche, would take control of the finances almost immediately.

The wananga said that if the Auditor-General's report found no financial impropriety, it would expect the Crown manager's role to end.

Also yesterday, officials from the Tertiary Education Commission were grilled at the education select committee over why they continued to give the wananga tens of millions of dollars despite having concerns about its performance.

The commission is responsible for tertiary funding.

Under questioning from National education spokesman Bill English the officials said the most recent report they received on the wananga's finances was in December and there had not been concern .

"You are flying blind, giving billions of dollars to the wananga on the basis of information that is now two months old," Mr English said.

New claims

* In Parliament yesterday Act MP Ken Shirley continued to raise allegations about the wananga.

* He said three wananga staff members in the information technology section formed a private company to supply softwarefls and IT hardware without competing tenders.

* He also claimed that a staff member responsible for security formed a private company and supplied all security equipment and services, again without competing tenders.