Merepeka Raukawa-Tait: Potential in board candidates

Iwi listen to Te Arawa Partnership Board candidates at the start of the month.

This week voting closes for the Te Arawa Partnership Board Election. Rotorua Lakes Council should count itself fortunate to have people of the calibre of the candidates who have put themselves forward for election by Te Arawa.

They are an outstanding line up of candidates. I took the opportunity to hear them speak on a number of occasions. Knowing most of them is one thing, but when people are asking you to vote them into a leadership position you want to know what they stand for and what they will bring to the job.

They are a group of mostly young people who have lived their lives within their own tribal area.

They want to ensure Rotorua city and the surrounding district grows and has a thriving future. They have significant ownership interests in the lands, forests, lakes and geothermal resources within the district. And they have all said the management of natural resources must be sustainable and with minimal negative impacts on the environment.

Their candidate profiles show business degrees and solid governance experience. The majority are bilingual. They have chosen to put their names forward because they believe they can develop and add value to the future relationship Te Arawa will have with the Rotorua Lakes Council. And there is no doubt that council needs their help. With Treaty settlements already concluded and others not far off settlement it is no secret that most of the future development within the district will come off the backs of these. They will not only bring the long awaited economic prosperity to the various iwi but these will also be shared with the whole community. That's why a positive relationship with the council is so important.

There was much ado when the Te Arawa Partnership was proposed. But Te Arawa, as usual, went quietly about doing what needed to be done. I find the optimism of the candidates refreshing. Not for them nitpicking, constant sniping and whining. Just totally focused on what they would like to see as a bright and compelling future for all who call Rotorua and district home. They realise that the Te Arawa Partnership is a two-way street. That council is relying on them to provide leadership, advice and guidance and to steer it in the right direction in things Te Ao Maori. But it can do much more. It can lead change in areas where council does not have knowledge, expertise or experience. Through their extensive networks locally and throughout New Zealand the Te Arawa Partnership can alert council to actions taken elsewhere that have been costly to councils and have not delivered what was expected. They can stop council from toppling off the cliff face and then expecting the ratepayers to pick up the tab.

Like all partnerships this one too must be entered into with a willingness to make the arrangement work. There must be mutual respect and the belief that by working constructively together good things will happen for the benefit of all concerned.

The debate around the Te Arawa Partnership proposal this year really set the cat among the pigeons. It was just the shot in the arm Te Arawa needed. Galvanised them into action. They had to think through what a new entity would look like. Who should be represented and more importantly what the partnership's role would be. Those elected will be future focused with a genuine concern for all citizens who have made their homes within Te Arawa's tribal area. They know the job carries a heavy responsibility. They will represent Te Arawa and will be expected to walk with a foot in both worlds. Yet at the same time demonstrate tikanga Maori and to uphold the mana of Te Arawa.

I have no doubt their conduct at the council table will be exemplary. They are after all professionals. But they won't be pushovers, I am certain of that.

What I do know is that through the partnership there is now an opportunity for everyone at the table to learn from each other. There is no shame in saying "I don't know enough about these matters", the shame lies in choosing to remain ignorant.