WHY?

We run a post saying that current Te Ohu Kai Moana chair Ngahiwi Tomoana was about to be rolled and on Friday it was made official. Blogger - the platform that runs our blog got tangled up in some Google maintenance issues and was broken for much of Friday and Saturday so hence we could not update.

The TOKM trustee company is essentially the legal repository for all Maori fish assets.

Te Kawai Taumata, the Electoral College whose role is to appoint directors to Te Ohu Kai Moana Trustee Limited, has appointed three new members and re-appointed one existing member to the board.

Te Ohu Kai Moana Trustee Limited is the corporate trustee for Te Ohu Kai Moana, the Maori Fisheries Settlement Trust and the Takutai Trust - the Maori Commercial Aquaculture Settlement Trust. Directors are appointed to four year terms.

The Chair of Te Kawai Taumata, Naida Glavish, a former Commissioner on the Treaty of Waitangi Fisheries Commission, said the decision on who to appoint to the board was difficult because there were a number of excellent candidates who offered a mix of sound business and commercial skills and commitment to tikanga Maori.

The new directors are:

Mr Matiu Rei, the Executive Director of Te Runanga o Toa Rangatira;

Ms Hinerangi Raumati, currently an alternate director of Te Ohu Kai Moana Trustee Limited, a trustee for the Public Trust and recently appointed the Chief Financial Officer for Te Wananga o Aotearoa; and

Mr Jamie Tuuta, Ngati Mutunga, a self-employed business consultant.

The directors replace the late Sir Archie Te Atawhai Taiaroa, Hon Koro Wetere, who is retiring, and Mr Ngahiwi Tomoana, the current chairman.

Current director, Mr Rikirangi Gage, the chief executive of Te Whanau a Apanui, was reappointed for a second four-year term.

Ms Glavish thanked Mr Wetere and Mr Tomoana for their service and commitment to the Maori seafood industry. "Maori own or influence almost half of New Zealand's commercial fishing industry, have sole interest in our country's customary fisheries and are active recreational fishers. They are also increasingly involved in aquaculture. Through Koro and Ngahiwi's constructive, collaborative leadership over the years, Maori involvement in the fishing industry has been strengthened considerably."

The sole function of Te Kawai Taumata is to appoint and remove the directors of Te Ohu Kai Moana Trustee Limited. It is made up of 11 members appointed by 10 regional groupings of iwi and one member on behalf of Representative Maori Organisations.

Te Kawai Taumata Members are: Naida Glavish (Chairman) representing Taitokerau; Na Raihania (Deputy Chairman) Takitimu; Graeme Morrell, Ngapuhi; Chris McKenzie, Tainui; Willie Emery, Te Arawa Waka; Tamati Cairns, Mataatua; Api Mahuika, Porourangi; Sam Tamarapa, Hauauru; Ngarongo Iwikatea Nicholson, Te Moana o Raukawa; Maui Solomon, Waipounamu/Rekohu; Sharyn Watene, Representative Maori.

There is huge discontent about the way Maori Fisheries assets are being handled. We have received a number of emails on the issue that indicate that Aotearoa Fisheries Ltd, the company that holds all the fisheries companies and Sealords may see some changes on their boards.

Maori are one of the big three in fishing now along side Talleys and Sanfords. The industry is worth about $1.4 billion a year. In any other comparable industry of this size there would be journalists all over this story as it has ramifications for all Maori and indeed all New Zealanders.

SHOO SHIMI - MAORI FISH KOHA TO NIPPON?

Well we hinted at some issues within Maori Fish interests. Someone has laid down some pieces of the puzzle..

Anyone else out there who has more? Will iwi see the great Sealords deal skelatonised like a filleted Hoki?

Codename 'Mata' - concerted effort from some Maori fisheries 'leaders' to give the Japanese more fisheries assets for no greater control of Sealord. Here Nissui-san, please have some more of our assets... The relationship with Nissui has never delivered the promised benefits back to iwi and one wonders of the idiocy of those in control about this deal. Shane Jones will no doubt be in support though... Another nail in the coffin of the collective model. 2016 - give the assets back to iwi; many will lose them but at least it will be through their own incompetence, not the incompetence of a bunch of nobodys. By Anonymous on WHY SUBSIDISE THE UBER WAKA? on 4/7/11

JASON

This week got off to a wretched start, my son Matt lost a great friend Jason Nilsen and another mate Dan Young is in hospital recovering from serious injuries after a boating accident in Fiordland.

Jason was a man with a good heart. He made sure that whenever he was passing through Central Otago that mum and dad always got a feed of fish.

He was never ever destined to do anything but fish and he was good at it.

He followed the six generations of salt encrusted footsteps of his Maori, English and Norwegian fishermen ancestors.

One branch of his family, the Calders was heavily entrenched in the Bluff oyster industry while the others, Nilsens and Bradshaws were cray and cod harvesters.

Jason had a huge lust for life and was always up to something - his "stealth missions" were legend.

He had a close bond with my son and his mate Dan and the three were plotting and planning world domination of Ernest Island - the muttonbird island where Dan and Mat and often Jason met once a year with their families. Some of Rakiuras finest young guns.

Jason supplied 45 huge crayfish tails for Matts recent wedding and Dan gave an hilarious speech about some of the "missions" that Mat and he had got up to over the years.

And Jason was also a wonderful father to Morgan, who loved his dad very, very much.

Jason was planning a mission of sorts when he was killed. He had bought the boat he was killed in to transport tourists to a big barge he had in Doubtful Sound. He had rigged it up so that you could get TV and watch it in comfort. He planned to take tourists to it for the Rugby World Cup 2011.

We will miss Jason - his wit, loyalty, unfailing good humour, his enormously generous spirit and big big heart.

Sail on Jason.

CALLING ON NZ SEAFOOD INDUSTRY

This is a chance for the New Zealand Seafood industry to dip into their pockets and do something that will go someway to reminding people that Winston Peters cannot be trusted and has no place on our political landscape.

David Farrar at Kiwiblog is calling for donations to outbid the Prime Minister to get the framed version of Winston's "No" sign. The clearest and starkest reminder of what a lying shitbag he is.

And no doubt Kiwiblog and Whaleoil will use it to great effect during the election campaign.

We do not want to see his type of politics in New Zealand again. We remember the support you gave the right wing blogs at the last election. So we need your support again. Do it for Mike Claudatos - If he was alive today he would have been good for a grand at least.

We want to make sure Winston doesnt come back - we did it once - we need your support again.. besides all funds raised will go to Christchurch and the bonus is you will get to play a part in a campaign that will be aimed at reminding the country of how Winston cannot be trusted.

So all you salty old seadogs - wipe the fishguts off your hands dip your paws into your pockets and give some dosh here david@farrar.com to keep the lying shitbag away from the Big Round House.

GO THE ROCK -

We reckoned that tthe Rocks competition to win a trip to the Ukraine and hook up with a good looking sheila and marry her - was fine. It involved consenting adults.

So we just caught up on the fact that the Rock has continued to take the piss out of the PC brigade yet again.

The competition which was "win a wife" is know known as Win A Trip To Beautiful Ukraine For 12 Nights And Meet Eastern European Hot Lady Who Maybe One Day You Marry'competition.

Excellent! So when is the "Win a trip to fantastic Stewart Island for 5 nights and meet a staggeringly handsome bloke who wears white gumboots to bed and likes rooting lots but smells a bit fishy, " competition going to be held,"

Just so I can give my mates - especially Cactus a heads up .

BLUFF FISHERMEN MAKE ARSES OF THEMSELVES

Only the UNPC capital of the world - Bluff. The local school has done a calendar of fishing fellas in the buff. Nothing hugely new in that. Tastefully done nudie calendars are are bit last decade . The new twist Bluff has come up with is a competition - guess the arse.

We lived in Bluff for 3 years..

Trouble is if you entered the competition and correctly guessed the most number of arses - well questions could be asked.

We wont be entering....

THE NOT SO FRIENDLY FACE OF PRIVATELY OWNED FORESHORE

We did a bit of a tiki tour on Saturday to a place called Flatpoint in the Wairarapa It's a stark barren stretch of coast . Flatpoint is a collection of  a hotch potch of both old style bachs and beach mansions. A smallish round house with uninterrupted views to the sea across the little 9 hole golf links is up for grabs - offers over $600k.  A vineyard with an average home and 3 ha is up for grabs at a $1 million.
Its an area known for crayfish and paua in abundance.

But what makes Flatpoint interesting is that the foreshore  - thats the beach , is privately owned and access is apparently jealously guarded as is a considerable stretch of the Wairarapa coast. In fact the discussion document on the Foreshore and Seabed Act makes special mention that these areas will not be part of any changes to the Foresohore and Seabed legislation.

There is essentially only one road into the area which stretches from Flatpoint to Glenburn. Sections with beach views are for sale and they have " exclusive access " to the beach to launch a boat " as part of the title. So sections do not own the access - they just appear to have " exclusive access" across the landowners land - in essence there is no Queens Chain.

It was not a welcoming place. Simply because the access to the beach is not allowed  and everywhere there were " Private Property" Private access only signs.  DOC had two access points and again it was made patently clear that part of that access was across private land. In one track it was made clear that the track did not provide access to the beach -essentially the very very long coastline is privately owned  - lock stock and sifting sand.

Each Section sale includes the following:

• a right of way secured to title in favour of the purchaser to enable permanent private access to boat launching to the Lot owner and his immediate family and guests, up to ten persons at a passing.
• a 1/39th share in the community controlling body as required by Resource Consent Condition(Flat Point Beach Ltd). This body will be responsible for Environmental monitoring and transfer of solid waste to landfill. This body is also required to draw new owners attention to the Environmental Care Code and to make its records available to Council annually.
• a 1/39th share in Lots 40 & 41(plantation reserve) and Lots 43 & 44(pedestrian walkways).

However we found a track to the beach via a river bed and we toddled down to the ice water just to say that we had dipped our toe in the ocean.  
It was an unsettling place simply because it does not feel like the rest of coastal New Zealand. It is not the way we want to see the rest of New Zealand's coast line managed. For some reason we cant quite fathom it actually made us profoundly sad.
We cant remember another place where we have essentially been locked out of a coastline.

We noticed that the access roads  which interestingly are public to a point are obviously maintained by the taxpayer and we would be interested in seeing who paid for both the power and telephone lines as well.

We are keen to see the foreshore and seabed issue sorted out to everyones advantage - we dont really care if there is a title that denotes ownership. However that ownership should be required to ensure public access. We do not want to see more examples of Flatpoint anywhere ever.

A TEASER - THE MEURANT CHRONICLES

Its August 1999 - A bitter winter chills the National Party as they face the prospect of losing the looming election.

Ross Meurant is working for Philip Vela. Vela is one of the great pioneers of the New Zealand Deep Sea Fishery - he is a big man who likes getting his own way fast. He is a heavy weight in the Fishing Industry Association the FIA - the big quota owners of the industry. The FIA was to have been dissolved with the formation of the inclusive Seafood Industry Council ( Seafic.) However they don't and for a while there is an internal war within the Seafood industry for power.

Meurant, employed specifically to get traction on some big ticket policy items for Vela reports on his progress each week. We have copies of those reports and screeds of other correspondence on a number of issues, about fishing, tax, the Rodney district council and other stuff like the insiders guide to NZ First. More on that soon.

The job Meurant was tasked to do for Vela was what became known as the " UN fish issue" a crap piece of legislation that put New Zealand flagged vessels at a disadvantage. Seafic was lobbying on the same issue.

So Meurant lobbied , as he was paid to do for Vela - the Leader of United NZ Peter Dunne to vote against the bill and the contentious UN clause.

Dunne, on the 16th of August 1999 states the Meurant position in a press release and calls on the government to " think again" on the bill.

However, Meurant gets sidetracked and instead of just lobbying politicians on the issue he takes a crack at a couple of the New Zealand Seafood Industry Council senior staff. In an effort to curry favour, he tells his boss he is going to discredit some of the Seafic staff knowing it will be music to Vela's ears.

From the Meurant report dated 22 August 1999

"In respect of my feeding a "scare" into the system i.e making it known that I have material on both ( John) Valentine ( the then CE of Seafic) and (Tony ) Craig (the then head of policy and strategy) relating to their competence and integrity respectively, this is just to remind them they don't have all the muskets. A calculated initiative you might speculate, but I don't have anything to lose. "

His final note at the end of the report is this:

Note: I appreciate it is not my money I am dealing with when I make suggestions such as follows but I do believe that there is much merit in providing Peter Dunne with $5000 towards his election campaign fund. It would be helpful for me on Wednesday if I were in a position to advise him that a donation had been approved.

Who said politician was not a dirty word!

Dunne was paid the $5000 in October 1999. Despite putting out the press release he eventually voted for the bill.

Dunne denied being paid for policy to both to the Dominion and in this curious interview he did with local journalism students on the issue.

For the record we worked with both Valentine and Craig. They are both highly competent and men of integrity.

Is there more? - yes.