Tainui head fights suspension

By KEVIN TAYLOR, political reporter

The Tainui executive's co-chairman Haydn Solomon has been suspended for allegedly interfering in the tribe's investigation into a Corrections Department contract it has over the proposed north Waikato prison.

The move has sparked another court dispute within the executive, a body well known for divisions.

Mr Solomon confirmed yesterday he had filed papers in the High Court at Hamilton seeking an interim injunction overturning his suspension. He expects a decision this afternoon.

Corrections Minister Paul Swain this week released an internal department report, which admitted excessive spending on iwi consultation and technical and cultural advice on the $250 million prison.

The Auditor-General has yet to rule if his office will also investigate.

About $1.5 million was spent over seven years including $524,000 in contracts let to Tainui's Waikato Raupatu Lands Trust and $46,399 to Mr Solomon. He was paid another $20,000 for work unrelated to the prison by the department's policy development team.

The executive, Te Kaumarua, decided to suspend Mr Solomon at a meeting on Wednesday.

Mr Solomon said yesterday the executive's other co-chairman, former NZ First MP Tuku Morgan, alleged he had interfered in the internal investigation by requesting a copy of the financial breakdown of the Corrections contract.

He said he was left with no choice but to take court action.

"The board has acted grossly unconstitutionally in terms of its constitution and its rules. I have a right as a director of the company to request any information."

A Te Kaumarua spokesman said the suspension was over Mr Solomon breaking rules laid down when the investigation was launched this month.

"When the executive voted to have the internal inquiry it was very clear that basically Tuku was the only person that would drive the inquiry. No one else who had been involved in the contract at all could have anything to do with it.

"Those rules were transgressed."

Act MP Rodney Hide said the ructions proved just how corrupting consultation payments could be.

Mr Hide recently quoted a June 2002 memo from former lands trust chief David Gray, which said the only interests being protected in the contracts were those of Mr Solomon, a Corrections consultant and former Tainui trust worker, and "a couple of his mates".

Mr Solomon defended his involvement yesterday.

"My involvement in the project was to ensure that the department, the Crown, acted responsibly in consulting with our people."

Mr Gray cited the political risks of the contract with Corrections in a June 2002 letter to the executive giving his reasons for resigning after four months in the job.

He cited poor governance by the executive, its dysfunctional nature, personal attacks on him, and lack of resources as among his reasons for leaving.

The Corrections report released this week found some costs were too high for the benefits received, too many people were involved early in the project, and some work could have been done in-house.

The money-go-round

What $46,399 of taxpayer money bought from Tainui's Haydn Solomon:

* Consultation and marae hui $18,560.

* Design input $9279.

* Resource management reporting and evidence $18,560.

* Another $20,000 was paid to him by the department's policy development team for work unrelated to the prison project. Source: Corrections Department report