Aperahama Edwards, a bigwig among the Ngatiwai, has a reputation for being strong on flexing Maori muscle and championing Maori sovereignty.
He popped up at the Far North District Council meeting last week, to speak as Chair of the Ngātiwai Trust Board and Co-Chair of Te Kahu o Taonui.
He said he was delivering a clear message:
We will call out racism, anti-Māori narratives, and misinformation. Kotahitanga is not a slogan, it is a practice. Our aspiration is he iwi mārangaranga, he whenua rangatira.
That was the day when an extraordinary council meeting confirmed the membership of Te Kuaka, the Māori Standing Committee and its Chair Mane Tahere.
The effect of that decision was extraordinary too: the committee’s six elected councillors will be outnumbered by 10 non-elected tribal appointees.
On a previous occasion, Edwards was removed from Parliament’s gallery during a debate about the government’s changes to the Marine and Coastal Area Act.
ACT’s Todd Stephenson, outlining the government’s position said:
“In 2011, there was a test established for marine customary title… the court of appeal got that wrong. What we want to make sure is that actually the intention of this house is restored.”
According to RNZ:
Edwards called out after Stephenson had finished, as NZ First’s Jenny Marcroft was about to speak, asking “ko wai hoki koutou?” (who are you/ what authority do you have?)
He questioned the government’s authority, saying the government was trampling on Māori sovereignty and on the mana of the foreshore and seabed.
Speaking on behalf of Ngāti Wai, he said his iwi didn’t agree to the government’s changes.
He has taken his grievances to King Charles III, too.
In December 2024 he was one of more than 500 Maori leaders who signed a letter to the King, asking him to “intervene” in policies affecting Māori.
The letter was sent on behalf of the National Iwi Chairs Forum, which represents more than 80 whānau, hapū, Iwi and Māori organisations.
The Government was dismissed in the letter as just a “middle man”.
Speaking to RNZ at the time, Edwards said Charles is a direct descendant of Queen Victoria – the reigning monarch at the time the treaty was signed – and had the mana to intervene.
He said the government were representatives of the Crown, therefore, representatives of King Charles.
“This is a conversation between the descendants of the Ariki who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the head of the Crown.”
Edwards said the experience of Māori interacting with government has been “futile”, so their request has gone right to the top.
“The obligation to honour the promise of Te Tiriti rests not only in the descendants of the chiefs who signed it, but in the descendants of Queen Victoria, namely King Charles.”
“We’re seeking his intervention to ensure that the government does not diminish the Crown’s honour.”
He said the purpose of the letter was to “elevate” the conversation and bring attention to treaty issues in Aotearoa.
Today, the Morning Report team sought comment after the Government said it won’t set up another dedicated fund to reimburse marae for their work leading up to Cyclone Vaianu.
But the Government is encouraging marae to keep in touch with officials on the ground in case they need support.
RNZ recalled the announcement of the $1 million Marae Emergency Response Fund in January to reimburse marae for the welfare support they provided during the weather events at that time.
Most of the fund has been distributed to dozens of marae, including seven Ngatiwai affiliated marae in Te Tai Tokerau.
Someone at RNZ decided to interview Edwards, perhaps expecting – or hoping – he would call for more funding and maybe kick up a fuss.
He didn’t.
Asked what the money meant, he said it wasn’t so much the fund that mattered.
“It was the fact that there was recognition of the important role our marae play – recognition of the responsiveness of our communities, our hapu, especially in some of our remote rural areas who naturally and consistently respond in these times of crisis to look after and manaaki everybody.”
Manaaki means to support, take care of, show respect, generosity, and care for others. It involves uplifting the mana (prestige/dignity) of individuals and visitors, often translated as hospitality or looking after people.
Edwards went on:
“And it’s the sense of duty and obligation that runs deep. It’s based in tikanga and our marae just swing into action and they host everybody and we’ve seen it time and time again…
“But you never hear grumbles, you never hear moans. Our whanau just do what they do.
“And so it was really heartening to see a sense of recognition of those efforts.”
PoO was somewhat surprised to hear that response to RNZ’s question.
Does this mean mana matters more than money?
This suggests (at least to a cynical observer) that a frugal Government could consider dishing out its recognition in the form of knighthoods and other honours, rather than cash?
Sir Aperahama has a nice ring to it.
And it would look impressive on the next letter to the king.
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
That was the day when an extraordinary council meeting confirmed the membership of Te Kuaka, the Māori Standing Committee and its Chair Mane Tahere.
The effect of that decision was extraordinary too: the committee’s six elected councillors will be outnumbered by 10 non-elected tribal appointees.
On a previous occasion, Edwards was removed from Parliament’s gallery during a debate about the government’s changes to the Marine and Coastal Area Act.
ACT’s Todd Stephenson, outlining the government’s position said:
“In 2011, there was a test established for marine customary title… the court of appeal got that wrong. What we want to make sure is that actually the intention of this house is restored.”
According to RNZ:
Edwards called out after Stephenson had finished, as NZ First’s Jenny Marcroft was about to speak, asking “ko wai hoki koutou?” (who are you/ what authority do you have?)
He questioned the government’s authority, saying the government was trampling on Māori sovereignty and on the mana of the foreshore and seabed.
Speaking on behalf of Ngāti Wai, he said his iwi didn’t agree to the government’s changes.
He has taken his grievances to King Charles III, too.
In December 2024 he was one of more than 500 Maori leaders who signed a letter to the King, asking him to “intervene” in policies affecting Māori.
The letter was sent on behalf of the National Iwi Chairs Forum, which represents more than 80 whānau, hapū, Iwi and Māori organisations.
The Government was dismissed in the letter as just a “middle man”.
Speaking to RNZ at the time, Edwards said Charles is a direct descendant of Queen Victoria – the reigning monarch at the time the treaty was signed – and had the mana to intervene.
He said the government were representatives of the Crown, therefore, representatives of King Charles.
“This is a conversation between the descendants of the Ariki who signed Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the head of the Crown.”
Edwards said the experience of Māori interacting with government has been “futile”, so their request has gone right to the top.
“The obligation to honour the promise of Te Tiriti rests not only in the descendants of the chiefs who signed it, but in the descendants of Queen Victoria, namely King Charles.”
“We’re seeking his intervention to ensure that the government does not diminish the Crown’s honour.”
He said the purpose of the letter was to “elevate” the conversation and bring attention to treaty issues in Aotearoa.
Today, the Morning Report team sought comment after the Government said it won’t set up another dedicated fund to reimburse marae for their work leading up to Cyclone Vaianu.
But the Government is encouraging marae to keep in touch with officials on the ground in case they need support.
RNZ recalled the announcement of the $1 million Marae Emergency Response Fund in January to reimburse marae for the welfare support they provided during the weather events at that time.
Most of the fund has been distributed to dozens of marae, including seven Ngatiwai affiliated marae in Te Tai Tokerau.
Someone at RNZ decided to interview Edwards, perhaps expecting – or hoping – he would call for more funding and maybe kick up a fuss.
He didn’t.
Asked what the money meant, he said it wasn’t so much the fund that mattered.
“It was the fact that there was recognition of the important role our marae play – recognition of the responsiveness of our communities, our hapu, especially in some of our remote rural areas who naturally and consistently respond in these times of crisis to look after and manaaki everybody.”
Manaaki means to support, take care of, show respect, generosity, and care for others. It involves uplifting the mana (prestige/dignity) of individuals and visitors, often translated as hospitality or looking after people.
Edwards went on:
“And it’s the sense of duty and obligation that runs deep. It’s based in tikanga and our marae just swing into action and they host everybody and we’ve seen it time and time again…
“But you never hear grumbles, you never hear moans. Our whanau just do what they do.
“And so it was really heartening to see a sense of recognition of those efforts.”
PoO was somewhat surprised to hear that response to RNZ’s question.
Does this mean mana matters more than money?
This suggests (at least to a cynical observer) that a frugal Government could consider dishing out its recognition in the form of knighthoods and other honours, rather than cash?
Sir Aperahama has a nice ring to it.
And it would look impressive on the next letter to the king.
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
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