Rebel MP Hone Harawira's last-minute attempt to say sorry for dissing his Maori Party may be too little, too late.
Mr Harawira admitted yesterday he sometimes said the wrong things and that he "struggled with authority".
He was speaking after a meeting with his party about his suspension from caucus.
But his statement was attached to yet another vitriolic attack on the party's coalition leader, National, indicating Mr Harawira has not yet got the recipe right for humble pie.
Maori Party co-leader Pita Sharples said that Mr Harawira had some way to go to regain his colleagues' trust.
"It would need to be an admission by him that he would be prepared to come within the code of behaviour, and the activities and the requirements of being in caucus," Dr Sharples said. "It's entirely up to him and that message is very clear."
Some Te Tai Tokerau Maori leaders are also having difficulty swallowing Mr Harawira's half-baked apology.
Sonny Tau, chairman of the country's largest runanga, Ngapuhi, indicated there was a frustrating and growing gap between Ngapuhi's vision of what the Maori Party could do for iwi and Mr Harawira's style of delivering that vision.
Mr Tau said he had sympathy for the position of co-leaders Pita Sharples and Tariana Turia.
"It is not an easy task in Maoridom to sideline anyone who is an integral part of your political machine."
But the party should have acted sooner and internally when the problem of Mr Harawira's behaviour "first reared its ugly head".
Mr Tau said Mr Harawira had a strong following in Te Tai Tokerau and he hoped the ructions did not result in a test of whether the electorate was for the party or the man.
While the Maori Party is reflecting on whether it can best afford to keep or lose Mr Harawira, electorate chairwoman Lisa McNab said Te Tai Tokerau need do no such soul-searching.
"We support Hone 100 per cent and that has never changed and it never will. Yes, we are looking for reconciliation and resolution so we can move on and, yes, we hope that means any disciplinary action can be put aside.
"This whole debacle is embarrassing for the Maori Party but is it embarrassing for Te Tai Tokerau; does it reflect badly on us? No way."
Ms McNab said it was "disappointing and unfair" that Mr Harawira's suspension came two days before his disciplinary meeting.
Hone: Sorry... sort of
for wedge in party unity
Ms McNab also said the situation had been inflamed by a focus on "personalities" and not the underlying issues of principals and kaupapa.
Mr Harawira has repeatedly accused the Maori Party of dealing with his outspokenness - primarily, of colleague Te Ururoa Flavell laying an official complaint - in a way that was not "the Maori way".
However, Mr Tau said Mr Harawira's take was not relevant to modern politics.
"In modern society if one wants to be in politics it is about compromise and our tupuna (ancestors) demonstrated through dealing with early settlers that they could and did compromise," Mr Tau said.
"A politician cannot claim credit for policy achievements but refuse to take responsibility for unpopular decisions."
He said Ngapuhi-nui-tonu (comprising iwi from South Auckland to North Cape) would rather be shaping policy rather than reacting to a thing already done.
Ngapuhi academic Hone Sadler said on Radio New Zealand that the Maori Party had been too soft in its approach to Mr Harawira, and support from iwi was waning.
Te Tai Tokerau Labour MP Kelvin Davis said he had resisted capitalising politically on the Maori Party melt-down because it was "their business".
But he was getting increasing feedback that Mr Harawira's "megaphone politics" and the party's internal problems were demeaning, embarrassing and harmful to Maori, he said.
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