Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Janet Wepa bows out

Matthew Martin
By Matthew Martin
Senior reporter, Rotorua Daily Post·Rotorua Daily Post·
12 Oct, 2016 02:33 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Janet Wepa missed out on re-election to the Rotorua Lakes Council.

Janet Wepa missed out on re-election to the Rotorua Lakes Council.

After 13 years as a Rotorua district councillor Janet Wepa has bowed out of local body politics, saying she is disappointed but proud of what she has achieved.

Mrs Wepa received 5069 votes in last Saturday's Rotorua Lakes Council election, coming 14th out of 35 people vying for 10 seats on the council.

Mrs Wepa had numerous roles on the council with mayor Steve Chadwick saying she would be hard to replace and was one of the council's most hard working members.

It has not been the best of years for Mrs Wepa, as her husband and biggest supporter, Matthew Wepa - a renowned carver and author - died in March after a long battle with cancer.

"I really want to acknowledge and appreciate all the people who did vote for me all these years, it's been a privilege to be on council and I thoroughly enjoyed making a contribution to the city," Mrs Wepa told the Rotorua Daily Post.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She said much of her work, that she estimated to average more than 30 hours a week over her career, and much more since she took on a council portfolio and chaired a major council committee, was done behind the scenes. She said she was not one to blow her own trumpet.

She has taken her defeat in the polls well and said she had plenty to keep her going.

"You put a lot of things on hold while on council...but my family have encouraged me to take more time for myself.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Of course I'm disappointed, you can't help that, it's always uncertain at election time and I never assumed I would get back on."

She said she had been overwhelmed by people texting, calling and emailing her messages of support after her election loss but said there were probably a number of reasons why she missed out.

"One of them would have been my support of the Te Arawa partnership.

"But, I went into that process with an open mind and many people - both Maori and Pakeha - made very good quality submissions and it was those that convinced me we should have that partnership in place.

"I did feel we were being targeted as Pakeha voting for Maori and it was sad to see how much of a fuss was made of that issue."

She said the new council would have to face some challenges in the year ahead, but she was proud of what she had achieved.

"It's hard to be a change-maker, but it's very easy to sit there and complain about everything and do nothing.

"One of their big challenges will be the rating review that's set for this year. Rates and rating systems were always one of the hardest decisions we had to make on council."

She said she was particularly proud of her work on the shared library and health hub project, working with EECA to insulate local homes, the Sustainable Living portfolio, the new District Plan, and making Resource Management Act decisions on projects such as the Redwood Centre and Pukehangi Rd subdivision - and the fact she left a council with reduced debt and more cash in hand.

One thing she is totally sure of is she won't be running for council again.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I'm happy, it's just one chapter in my life closing and I have no plans to stand again."

Janet Wepa's roles include:
- Chairwoman of the Rotorua Lakes Council Operations and Monitoring Committee
- Rotorua Lakes Council Sustainable Living portfolio leader
- Resource Management Act commissioner
- Regional council Air Quality Working Group member
- Regional council Geothermal Working Group member
- Regional council Transport sub-committee member
* This is not a full list of her roles

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

11 Jul 05:00 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

11 Jul 12:26 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

10 Jul 11:07 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

11 Jul 05:00 AM

Mark 'Shark' Hohua died in June 2022 after a violent assault over money.

Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

11 Jul 12:26 AM
Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

10 Jul 11:07 PM
Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

10 Jul 10:57 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP