Te Arawa hearings wrap up (+ video)

Waiariki MP and Maori Party co-leader Te Ururoa Flavell.

An MP, orator and the mayor's husband were among the final verbal submitters at Rotorua Lakes Council's last day of hearings for the Te Arawa Partnership Proposal.

Tipuna, common sense and democracy were common themes. There have been five days of hearings over the past two weeks. Yesterday afternoon mayor Steve Chadwick thanked all who had participated in the process.

"Where to from here? Council has to consider what we've heard," she said. "We've got to make sense of them."

Yesterday Te Ururoa Flavell, who is the Waiariki MP and Maori Party co-leader, said he was there representing himself, his wife and children as well as the generations to come.

He told the councillors all Te Arawa wanted was a chance to korero (talk).

"You wonder why people get hoha (annoyed) with the process, it's because our views do not count, they are not being heard and our people across the board are saying they just want to sit at the table and have a korero," he said.

"For all those reasons people have sat here and presented to you. Anybody who believes Maori are going to come over the top of the hill guns blazing to take over your land - that's not going to happen.Why? Tikanga tells us. Under the banner of Tatau Tatau, all together ..."

Toastmaster champion Kingi Biddle said while there was just one person making their submission there were thousands of people in the room with them.

"Thousands sit behind us and millions sit in front. This isn't about democracy, it's about this. It's not about legal issues, but common sense."

He said when the Fenton Agreement was signed and thousands of hectares were gifted to create "a better future, would they give away their right to have a say"?

Meanwhile other submitters said the proposal was undemocratic and reiterated it gave an unfair advantage to a minority.

"It means we're giving privileges to one group of people in our democracy over others," said Marcus Wilkins, who represented the Okere Group. "Te Arawa voters now get two votes. This violates the principle of one person one vote."

Hilda Crabtree, 91, said the proposal, should it go ahead, would cost a lot of money and people on fixed incomes were already facing the prospect of spending more on rates.

"We're all New Zealanders ... How do you wish to be remembered? As the ones who brought protest marches to the streets of Rotorua? Look for a fairer way to communicate with Maori and find a solution that doesn't disadvantage the rest of the country."

The final submitter was barrister John Chadwick, the mayor's husband, who told councillors the proposal was "the right thing to do".

Meanwhile, a working party comprising three councillors and three community members is currently reviewing other council representation arrangements ahead of the 2016 elections and will make its recommendations to the council later in the year.

The issues under consideration include how many councillors should be elected, whether they should be elected in wards or "at large," and whether there should be community boards. The question of Maori wards is not part of that review as the matter was already discussed and resolved by the council last November as required by the Local Government Act.