The number of mourners at Tūrangawaewae Marae during this morning’s pōwhiri, rose to double that of yesterday.
Reporters there talked to leaders including Te Pāti Māori co-leaders, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer & Rawiri Waititi, Dame Naida Glavish and Sir Mark Solomon.
‘The heart aches’ - Dame Naida Glavish
Dame Naida Glavish’s comments are translated from Māori.
Ex-Māori Party president Dame Nadia Glavish said she met the Māori King through his mother.
“That is what really saddens me most, it’s heart-breaking and strikes the spirit. The memories between us and the times we shared with each other will never be forgotten. However, right now, at this very moment it hurts. The heart aches.”
She said no matter how serious the kaupapa was, the king would always find a way to laugh.
“He enjoyed having a laugh. Regardless of the nature of the discourse or how tough the discussion was, he would always find a way to have a laugh.
“He was a humble person, and a person who stayed true to what he said. Whatever it was he said, he stayed true and stayed the course, no matter what.”
She recalls the last words Kiingi Tuheitia spoke to her.
"One time, I attended a dinner and he arrived at the event. He came over to greet me and said to me, which were to be his last words to me was, ‘Your boss has arrived.’ That’s what he said to me.”
‘Fondest memory’ - Debbie Ngarewa-Packer
Te Pāti Māori co-leader and Taranaki raukura Debbie Ngarewa-Packer recalls some of her fondest memories shared with Kiingi Tuheitia.
“I think the fondest memory is the fact that he knew us and he was so relatable and so I’m arriving here as Taranaki feeling really pōuri in my ngākau.
“It’s just been this whanaungatanga the king allowed, almost causality, in the relationship with us. We always believed we were his party, his movement. We’re very blessed.”
Ngarewa-Packer notes it’s the first time visiting Tūrangawewae marae since his 18th koroneihana celebration.
The ceremony honours the dead and celebrates Tainui Waka, Tainui Tāngata, acknowledging the contributions of Waikato descendants to the Kiingitanga movement.
Upon arriving, she said it was an emotional feeling once she started thinking about the last time they were there.
“I think for Taranaki the kiingitanga has an absolutely special place in our hearts for all of us as Māori. But for us he was our kiingi and I’ve never known a kingi but our Kiingi Tuheitia.
She said Taranaki had been in wānanga for the past few days, and that it had been “a beautiful gift” from Kiingi Tuheitia, uniting them before their arrival at Tuurangawaewae Marae.
“The past 18 years we’ve been blessed with the sacrifice our kiingi has given to us as a people. We have to hold true to what he said -‘kotahitanga’.
“The way he would laugh and just his absolute realness. We’re going to truly miss our kiingi.”
In the early stages particularly with co-leader Rawiri Waititi, there was an uncle/nephew relationship relationship, she said.
“That cheeky vibe and they’re both very much grassroot leaders.”
‘A good, humble King’ - Rawiri Waititi
Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi, said he would prefer to keep his memories of Kiingi Tuheitia private.
“Ko ngā āhuatanga e kōrero pēnei nā koe, ā tangata nei, ehara i te tangata, he Ariki. Nō reira ka pupuri i ērā maharatanga ki roto i a au, ā, ka kawe nei, ka pīkau nei i te āhuatanga o te tangi ki tētahi Ariki nui, ki te Kiingi Māori.
“You’re talking about him as a person, well actually he was more than a person, he was a monarch. So, I’d prefer to keep the personal memories of him to myself and will carry out the conduct of mourning that is befitting for a monarch, for a king.
“18 tau a ia i runga i te torona tapu o ōna mātua, o ōna tīpuna, e pupuri nei i te mauri o tērā Kaupapa. Koirā hoki tētahi kaupapa kaitā, nō reira kei te mihi atu rā ki tō tātou Kīngi i tēnei rā, kei te tangi. Me te mea anō hoki, kei te mihi atu ki a Waikato, ko rātou kei te hiki maitai i roto i te kaupapa nei, ko te koroneihana. Arā, i tēnei rā, ko te tangihanga o tō tātou kiingi. Nō reira kia kaha Waikato, kei konei te iwi hei taituarā mā koutou.”
“He has been on the throne of his parents and ancestors for 18 years, and maintained the life force of that movement, a rather significant movement, and so we acknowledge him, and mourn him. Also, I must acknowledge Waikato, who are doing all the heavy lifting for this movement, with the coronation and now, today with the tangihanga for our king. So, kia kaha Waikato, the people are here to support you,” he said.
The party co-leader called the late king a good humble one, who believed in unity and delivered on it.
“He Kiingi pai tēnei. He Kiingi pai ka whakaitia, ko tōna ōhākī ki tōna i whakapono ai. I whakapono aiki te Kotahitanga. I whakapono ai ki te mana Motuhake. I whakapono ai kitōna iwi Māori. Whakapono ana hoki ki te hunga mokopuna e ao ake. Nō reira,koinei ōku maharatanga ake ki tēnei o tātou Kīngi, mai i tōna rā tuatahi taenoa mai ki tēnei rā. Kua ara anō hoki, he kaiārahi mō tōna iwi, ana kei te kiteake, kua marū tōna marae i tēnei rā. Engari, kei te tangi, kei te tangi. Koiakei te hautū i te waka o Tamarereti i tēnei wā, i te nui, i te mano, i te rautāngata kua riro ki te pō.”
“A good King. A good, humble King who died striving for what he believed in. For the belief in unity. The belief in independence. The belief in his Māori people. He also believed in the future generations. This is what I will personally remember of this king of ours, from his first day to this day, he rose as a leader for his people, and as you can see, his courtyard has filled today. So, we mourn and lament him who is now at the helm of the great canoe of Tamarereti carrying the many, the scores of our people who have passed into the night.”
‘Long relationship with Tainui’ - Sir Mark Solomon
Former Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu kaiwhakahaere Sir Mark Solomon spoke about the relationship between Ngāi Tahu and Tainui waka.
Solomon said their connection with Tainui waka was an “awesome relationship” that helped to develop the memorandum of understanding, a formal agreement between the two.
“Kingii Tuheitia was a good person, an ordinary person if I can put it that way. He was like his mum, very easy to talk to.
“You can look at him because he’s the one that’s been trying to bring the kotahitanga back among all iwi, especially with all the nonsense we’re going through at the moment with the government.”
Solomon himself progressed from working as a metal worker in a foundry to chairing Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, a tribal council and billion-dollar enterprise dedicated to advancing the collective interests of the South Island iwi. He was knighted in 2017.
Additional writing by Daniel Perese and Piripi Taylor.