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Kōrero: te Ua, Hetekia Te Kani-ā-Takirau Kerekere Tūhoe

Whārangi 1: Haurongo

te Ua, Hetekia Te Kani-ā-Takirau Kerekere Tūhoe

1892–1966

Nō Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki; he rangatira, he tangata whakapapa, he pū whaikōrero

I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Henare te Ua, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 1998. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.

I Tūranga (Gisborne), i te 29 o Ākuhata i te tau 1892, i whānau a Hetekia Te Kani-ā-Takirau te Ua. Ko ia te mātāmua a Katerina Takawhaki Kerekere rāua ko tana tāne, ko Harawira Tūhoe te Ua. Ko ōna tino iwi ko Ngā Pōtiki me Te Whānau-a-Kai o Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, ko Ngāti Ruapani, me Te Whānau-a-Tarawaho, he hapū nō Tūhoe. He wā anō whakahuahuatia ai e ia te katoa o tōna īngoa, arā, a Hetekia Te Kani-ā-Takirau Kerekere Tūhoe te Ua; i waenganui i tōna whānau rātau ko ōna hoa ka whakapotohia ki a Te Kani.

I kuraina tuatahitia ia i te kura o Te Waerenga-a-Hika i kō mai o Tūranga; i muri iho kotahi tau ia i te kura tuarua o Tūranga. Nō te tau 1909 i whakaurua atu ia ki te kāreti o Whakatū (Nelson College), ā, e toru rawa ōna tau ki reira. I ēnei tau he mea ako ia ki te purei piana i te kura ako puoro o Whakatū (Nelson School of Music). Ko tāna i tino ako ai ko ngā puoro a Chopin. Atu i te tau 1912 ki te tau 1915 i haere ia hai tamamārō i te whare wānanga o nehe i Rūātoki. I reira e whakangungua ana ki te kai mārō, ki ngā karakia o tuawhakarere, ki ngā whakapapa me ngā tikanga Māori a ōna tūpuna. I reira hoki ka akona ia ki te tārei i te kupu me ngā tikanga whakanikoniko o te whaikōrero.

Nō te 18 o Hune i te tau 1917 ka moea e ia a Te Rina Turupa Ngata, te tamāhine mātāmua a Apirana rāua ko Arihia Ngata. Kātahi hoki te mārena tōtōā, whakapaipai hoki i Parihimānihi i Waihīrere i riro nā te minita rā, nā Te Hāpata (Herbert W. Williams) i whakahaere. Ko te tangata tautoko i a Te Kani i tana mārenatanga ko Wiremu Nētana Pānapa. I muri nei ka tū ia hai pīhopa tuarua mō Aotearoa. I haere tahi rāua ko Te Kani ki te kura whakaako minita o Te Rau Kahikatea (Te Rau Theological College) i Tūranga. I te putanga mai kua raihana kētia ia hai minita reimana mō te Hāhi Mihingare. Nā tēnei moenga i tūhonotia ai ngā whānau tino rangatira e rua o Te Tai Rāwhiti, i whakakahatia atu ai hoki te tūranga kaiārahitanga o Apirana. He whare ngaro tēnei moenga, kore kau i puta he hua ēngari he tokomaha ā rāua whāngai.

Whakatika atu a Takawhaki, te kōkā o Te Kani, ka whakahautia kia hangaia he whare inā anō te nui mō te tokorua nei, i runga i ōna pānga whenua i Pūhātikotiko (Pūhā), e 22 māero pea i waho atu o Tūranga. E rima ngā rūma moe ēngari ko te mea mīharo o taua whare ko te pourewa mātakitaki i runga ake o te tuanui. Tapaina ana e Te Kani tō rāua whare ko Tower House. Ko tētahi o ngā taputapu whakapaipai o te whare ko te piana momo tino rangatira nei, he Bechstein. I te whakapaipaitanga a Te Kani i ngā kāri o te whare he mea whakatakoto e ia kia rua ngā papa tēnehi, papa hauwhiti me te papa pūtarotaro i waengarahi tonu o te whenua, he mea waihanga ki te āhua o te pea, hei whakamaharatanga ki te moenga o Apirana rāua ko Arihia i raro i te hua rākau pea i Whareponga i Te Tai Rāwhiti.

Nō te tau 1918, i tīmata ai te pānga o Te Kani ki te poari kaitiaki o Mangatū, ka 40 tau tana roa i reira. He mea whakatū tēnei poari hei whakahaere i ngā whenua ā-iwi ki te tuawhenua o Tūranga; ko Te Kani te waha kōrero mō Ngāti Wahia. I muri nei i te tau 1948, nō te rironga o te mana whakahaere i te komiti ā-iwi, ka huaina taua poari ko te Kaporeihana o Mangatū. I mua atu, he kōmihana i te whakahaere. I te tau 1953, ka ngaro te mana pōti o te hapū, ka ara ake ko te mana pōti o te tangata kotahi i runga i te nui o ōna hea ki te whenua. Tutū ana te puehu i tēnei tikanga. Kua kore e aro me pēhea te whakanohonoho i ngā mema ki runga i te komiti whakahaere, tute tonu iho tētahi i tētahi, riro rawa ake nā te Kōti Whenua Māori kātahi anō ka tōtika. I aua raruraru nei i noho mema a Te Kani i ētahi wā, he wā anō i noho ia hai heamana. Taka rawa mai nei ki Mei o te tau 1959 kātahi anō ia ka whakatā, he pū nō te rūhā.

Ehara ko te koi anake o tōna arero te take i mōhiotia ai a Te Kani i runga i te marae. Tāpiri atu ki tērā ko te hanga pai anō hoki o te mau kaka mai o te tangata. Me kai te kāinga nei ia, he rāpaki paraikete whero noa nei tāna i roto i te whare, i waho rānei, i a ia e mahi ana i tana māra kotahi eka te nui. I ōna taringa mau haere tonu ai a Te Kani i ngā tautau me ana mōtoi pounamu, he taonga tuku iho ki a ia nā Rāpata Wahawaha rāua ko Te Pairi Tūterangi, te tohunga nei o Tūhoe, te kaiwhakaako hoki i a Te Kani.

Kai te maumaharatia tonutia tōna toa ki te whaikōrero. Āta whakaaro rawa ia he aha kē te kaupapa o te hui. Hai te tūnga, ka whakahokia mai anō e ia te kōrero ki a ia me tōna rahi anō hoki ki Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki, me te whakatairanga anō i te kaupapa ki te rere piu haere o te tokotoko. Ka mea kua kapekapetau, kua oma, he aha rā, tarapeke haere ana. He kōrero tā ngā ringa, he kupu tā ngā karu, whatārangi ana tana whakaniko i te kōrero. Nā te kaha mīharo ki a ia umeretia ana ia e te tangata me te pakaru anō o te kata. He wā anō kua whakatakariri ki te kata a te tangata kua kohete, 'Kauaka katakata, kauaka katakata'. Koia, koia.

Nā ngā mātauranga i whāngaia ki a ia, pai ana tāna tū i te marae, he hanga noa ki a ia te whakamanuhiri i te rangatira Pākehā. Pupū ana te auahi o te hikā corona, i te pai o tēnei kai ki a ia. He pērā anō te pai ki a ia o te kai tōrori i rō paipa. Ko ngā tōrori nei he mea whakamaroke ki Tower House. Kakū ana tana ngao i ngā kai papai a te Pākehā, ēngari ko tēhea atu hoki i te kānga kōpiro, i te toroī, i te kōura mara, i te kina i rāua ki te wai māori mō ngā rā e toru, i te kōuka, i te mangō me te kererū huahua, he mea kōtutu katoa i roto anō i ōna hinu.

He tohunga a Te Kani ki te tao hāngi; kore rawa i paru i a ia ngā kai i a ia ka tunu, mā tonu tana mahi. Kaua te tangata e pokanoa ki te tū i te taha hau o te hāngi, kai tūpono te haunga noa o ngā pōhatu. Ki te patero te tangata, mā te karakia whāioio tuauriuri rawa e muru. I te tau o te kūmara, whakapāpātia atu ki runga i ngā pōhatu ngā kūmara pakupaku i te hukenga o te hāngi. I te maonga, kua whakamaroketia hai kao, ā, kātahi hoki te kai reka, whakawaiwai ko tēnei ko te kao. Kāore hoki he tangata i tua atu i a Te Kani ki te tunu i te tuna ki te auahi o te paina, āta tunu noa iho. Ka maoa ka whakairia e ia kia maroke, kua waiho hai kai ā tōna wā. Huri te tau, kai te hauhake tonu ia i ngā kai o tana māra, i ngā rīwai, i ngā kūmara, i ngā mānawa (he momo kūmara tino reka), i ngā kānga, i ngā paukena, i ngā kamokamo, i ngā merengi, ā, i ngā kākāriki me ngā rōpere. Nā te tangata kura mahora, kua hoatu kē ngā manga pai mā ētahi atu.

He maha ngā hoa Pākehā o Te Kani, arā, he tāngata puoro, he tāngata hākinakina, tae atu ki ōna hoa o te kāreti, me tētahi tangata he teihana hipi nei tāna nāna nei i ako ki te reo Māori me te waiata. Ko Te Kani tonu tētahi o ngā kaiāwhina i a William Greenwood, nāna nei i tuhi te pukapuka rā The upraised hand, he kōrero rā mō te Hāhi Ringatū. Nāna ngā whakapapa o taua pukapuka. He hoahoa anō hoki rāua ko Eriki (Eric) Ramsdsen. Ahakoa ngā kaupapa e pā ana ki te Māori, ahakoa te kawa, te tātaritanga rānei i te tōrangapū Māori, tukua atu ana e Eriki mā Te Kani e titiro. I whai awe atu hoki a Te Kani ki a Leo Fowler, te kaiwhakaara i ngā kaupapa Māori mō te Kaporeihana Pāho o Aotearoa (New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation), i te wā e whakaruruhau ana a Te Kani i ngā mahi a te Karapu Māori o Waihīrere.

Ahakoa ko Apirana tōna hungarei, he mana kē tō tētahi, he mana kē tō tētahi. He rerekē te mātauranga ki ngā tikanga Māori o Te Kani i tō Ngata, ā, he mea whakaae tonu tērā e Ngata. Nā Apirana rāua ko te pia me te tohunga ki te reo nei, nā Pei Te Hurinui Jones i tā ngā kōrero me ngā whakamāramatanga a Te Kani mō ngā waiata o Te Tai Rāwhiti ki roto i Ngā mōteatea. Whā tekau ngā tau a Te Kani e kōpikopiko ana hai māngai mō tōna iwi ki ngā hui o te motu. Mau ana tēnei āhua ōna ki runga i tana pōhatu whakamaumahara, 'He tirohanga kanohi nō Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki i ngā marae o te motu'. Kai te mau tonu te mahara o ētahi atu iwi mōna i āna whakawhitiwhiti kōrero ki a rātau. I muri mai o te matenga o Kīngi Korokī, i whakapā rawa te Kīngitanga ki a Te Kani ko wai hei whakakī i te whārua.

He tangata kura mahora a Te Kani. Ki te hunga ki tōna whakaaro e tika ana, makere noa ana i a ia te patu pounamu, te kete, te tāniko, te korowai, te tokotoko tae noa ki tana mako tautau, tēnei rā tētahi o āna tino taonga. He kanohi kitea ki ngā mahi whakawā i ngā kapa haka, te whakararā i te piana i ngā rā whakangahau ā-tau o te kura o Pūhā, i ngā hīmene rānei o ngā karakia ā-wiki. E hia hoki ngā tau e kohaina ana e ia te kotahi pāuna ki Ngā Hōia Whakaora (Salvation Army) i haere mai rā i Tūranga me tā rātau pēne ki te purei i runga i te papa karaihe o tōna whare, o Tower House.

Mō ana mahi mā tōna iwi, ka whakawhiwhia ia ki te tohu OBE i te tau 1959. Nō te 30 o Hepetema i te tau 1966 i mate ia i Tower House, ā, nehua tonutia ana ia ki Parihimānihi i Waihīrere. Mahue iho ana tana pouaru a Te Rina rātau ko ā rāua whāngai.

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Henare te Ua. 'te Ua, Hetekia Te Kani-ā-Takirau Kerekere Tūhoe - te Ua, Hetekia Te Kani a Takirau Kerekere Tūhoe', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1998. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/biographies/4t10/te-ua-hetekia-te-kani-a-takirau-kerekere-tuhoe (accessed 20 March 2024)