Graeme Reeves: Observations on 3 Waters reform (now Affordable Waters)

On Saturday, 15 April on the Nation (TV3) John Tamihere, as part of a panel commenting on the affordable water reforms, expressed the view that all the fresh water in the rivers and lakes of New Zealand are the property of Māori:  

“We know they had to go to a co-governance model to placate the true issue, which is that Māori own the water assets, that’s just a fact.”

He went on to say: “Māori rightly say, how do we get co-governance when we own 100 percent of it?

The real issue is how do pakehas get into the room.”

Is Tamihiri’s assertion that Māori own 100 percent of the fresh water in New Zealand a fact that has been proven by the Court true?

Point of Order: Tamihere once wanted Auckland’s Watercare to be partly privatised .....

....and now he says NZ’s water is owned by Maori

Not for the first time, Maori Party president John Tamihere has asked who owns the water? and provided the politically contentious answer: Maori do:

Writing for Stuff, he declaimed: