Chair Shar Amner said Murphy-Peehi had served the incorporation for 41 years, including a term as chair – a position his father Robin Murphy-Peehi also held.
Amner said the Karioi sheep, beef and dairy farmer brought a hands-on perspective to strategic plans and governance decisions.
“His contribution has been significant and enduring,” Amner said.
“Across four decades, he brings much experience and focus on the whenua and on shareholder interests, and his knowledge and experience has contributed to shaping the organisation. The board acknowledges his dedication over this time.
“He built relationships across many committee members, staff and shareholders who all have valued the opportunity to know and work alongside him.”
Murphy-Peehi (Ngāti Rangi, Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Tūwharetoa) farms with his wife Christine and son on ancestral land.
In a candidate video released when he last stood for the board, Murphy-Peehi said he was proud of the organisation’s achievements, including land recovery, financial redress and environmental stewardship.
He said one of the greatest achievements was the long-running programme from the 1970s to resume whenua that was leased out over many decades under long-term agreements, often on terms far less favourable than commercial standards.
As those leases come up for review or expiry, Ātihau can buy back the leasehold interest and return the land to its own farming portfolio – a process seen by many shareholders as central to restoring rangatiratanga and rebuilding direct stewardship of their ancestral blocks.
Murphy-Peehi said the board had been united behind a single vision: returning whenua to collective control and putting it back into productive use for its owners.
“All our board members have had the same vision – to get back the land and farm it ourselves … for the benefit of our shareholders,” he said.
He pointed to $23.5 million secured from the Crown in financial redress in 2008, calling it a major milestone.
The redress refers to compensation for losses incurred under the former “vested lands” regime, which locked large areas of Ātihau land into long, low-return leases managed by the Crown.
Over decades, the incorporation took on significant debt to resume those leases and regain control of its whenua.
The redress was intended to clear that debt and compensate for the economic disadvantage caused by the regime, allowing Ātihau to rebuild its financial base and farm the land for the benefit of shareholders.
On environmental impacts, Murphy-Peehi said the organisation had consistently pushed for sustainable farming practices, noting that every type of production carried a footprint but the aim had always been to minimise it.
“We’ve been as sustainable as you can be, in my opinion.”
Eight people are standing for three positions on the board. Three of the seven current board members, including Murphy-Peehi, will stand down as part of the board’s rotation policy.
Amner and Sarah Rae are up for re-election, and six further nominees have been confirmed. They are Charles Chadwick, Kiritahi Firmin, Jonelle Hiroti-Kinane, Debbie Hyland, Hayden Potaka and Charles Taituha.
Shareholders will have the opportunity to vote at Friday morning’s annual general meeting at the Whanganui Racecourse on who will join Rawiri Tinirau, Hamish Blackburn, Kemp Dryden and Keria Ponga for the next term. Postal and proxy votes can also be cast.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
