Waitangi Day festivities return to Clive after year's break

Tom Mulligan (left) Marie Edwards, Jim Edwards, Henare O'Keefe, Navada Campbell, Pete Findlay, and Ken Wairau are preparing for this year's Waitangi Day celebration at the Clive River.

Waitangi Day celebrations will return to Clive's Farndon Park this year.

Last year's Clive festival was cancelled due to the death of committee member Lily Baker and neck injury of Jim Edwards, who manages the use of the waka Nga Tukemata O Kahungunu.

Jim and Marie Edwards have been the organisers of the Waitangi Day celebrations at Clive since the 2000 Millennium celebrations and said with the help of an enthusiastic group of newcomers they will be staging the event this year, with free waka rides on offer.

Another change this year is to the Waitangi Day hikoi. Instead of starting from Waipatu Marae it will start from Waitangi Regional Park at Waitangi Estuary after the ceremonies at 7.30am.

Waitangi Estuary is where iwi signed the Treaty of Waitangi. Taking part in the hikoi will be Jerry Hapuku, whose great-great-grandfather, Heretaunga chief Te Hapuku, was a Treaty signatory.

Due to its historical significance The Hawke's Bay Regional Council is building a park at Waitangi Regional Park featuring a celestial compass and pou.

Hikoi organiser and Hastings District councillor Henare O'Keefe said everyone was invited to join the hikoi.

"Bring your club flags and banners, it's for all people," he said.

The Farndon Park celebration starts at 9am on February 6 with a formal welcome followed by a pageant on the Clive river, re-enacting the arrival of European migrants.

Following ceremonies there will be free rides all day on the 20m Nga Tukemata O Kahungunu waka.

Mrs Edwards said free entertainment for children will be provided which will "keep them busy all day while the many stalls provide a multitude of delicious local food to suit all tastes plus clothing, handcrafts, jewellery, books and more".

"There is a superb line up of local musicians starting off with Hawke's Bay Batacuda Brazilian Drummers followed by compere Kem Wairau and his band No Wurez, Bert Hura, Raymond Solomon, Ni Keefe and Mike Savage will keep you entertained all day and you can get up and do a bit of dancing."

The biggest Waitangi Day activity will be at Hawke's Bay Regional Sports Park, which for the month of February will be renamed Kahungunu Park.

Waitangi Day last year attracted 10,000 to the park for a showcase of social sports, whanau relay races, food stalls, arts and crafts and kapa haka.

This year Waitangi Day is the first stage of the inaugural Kahungunu Festival, which will continue through to one of the world's biggest cultural performance events: Te Matatini - the National Kapa Haka Festival from February 22 to February 26.

Te Matatini is expected to attract 20,000 visitors to the region, with about 15,000 attending the park every day where 45 kapa haka groups will take centre stage.