Remark
Questions still linger over the credentials and record of a political and media favorite who rose to prominence amid more than minor controversy, writes Aaron Smale
Comment: Kelvin Davis, deputy leader of the Labor Party, gave some rather vague reasoning when he tried to explain why senior adviser Matt Tukaki wasn’t really under investigation when he was hired for $1000 a day. It seemed good enough to Davis that Tukaki was known.
“I’d heard about the things he’d apparently done abroad,” Davis said. Which almost suggests that media profile and promotion are now a factor in getting a high-level government advisory role.
That was Davis’ reaction when 1News journalist Yvonne Tahana asked serious questions about details of Tukaki’s resume that seemed inaccurate. Davis’s excuse is rather flimsy, as he appointed Tukaki to a pivotal role as chairman of an advisory board supposed to solve the troubled Oranga Tamariki. But instead of getting Tukaki thoroughly vetted, Davis relied on what Tukaki said about his backstory in the media.
Tukaki built that sizable media profile thanks to some lazy journalism that didn’t bother to ask some basic questions. It’s as if journalists are happy to find a Māori who will talk about all subjects when he gets his hands on the microphone. Pakeha journalists from all sectors of the media – as well as a few Māori journalists – have rushed to Tukaki to solicit comments on all things Māori.
It seems this is based on a number of things – he has had (or given himself) important sounding titles that could give the impression that he represents Māori. And he has made himself available, with much to say. Most journalists have little in-depth contacts in Māori circles, so if they are forced to write a story about some Māori problem, they don’t have many people to go to when they have a deadline. Tukaki gave them an easy one.
Broadcasters couldn’t help it because he always had a controversial sound bite. There’s a tendency to try and find that definitive Māori voice that can give quick quotes when a national issue requires a sound bite to fall into the “Māori say” slot. Tukaki has become a handy go-to.
The problem is that no one speaks on behalf of Māori. I doubt even King Tuheitia would make such a claim. There are a few Māori leaders who might be able to assemble a coalition of Māori voices to speak with unity about some kaupapa of the moment, but Māori have a jealous tendency to always retain the right to speak on their behalf. Even a kuia of Whina Cooper’s mana struggled to hold together the coalition of Māori interests that trailed behind the 1975 Land March. What’s so hard to understand about this – Māori are as diverse in thoughts and opinions as any other group of people.
Tukaki has also been given a platform on Radio Waatea to have his say. Willie Jackson was the original version of this Māori shock jock, but he sits in parliament and is now broadcaster’s secretary, so Waatea clearly needed someone to fill in. Handily enough, Tukaki seems to endorse much of what the Labor government is doing.
Tukaki did have a prominent role on the Maori Council, but this soured when he was voted out of an election – a result he still refuses to accept – and the Council began to take a closer look at its time. That investigation led the Maori Council to make official complaints to the police and others, including Jackson, as minister of Maori affairs.
In Oranga Tamariki’s appointment, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of people who are better qualified and have stronger credentials in the field of child protection than Tukaki. I’ve come across a number of people who are completely baffled at how he was hired for such a pivotal role. The general gist is “who is this?” [guy] and how did he get that job?”
I started asking questions about Tukaki last year and followed further coverage in May. TVNZ’s Tahana has also found a number of reasons to question his position. Here’s a rundown of what’s been reported so far:
- Last year a letter was sent to Willie Jackson to question the legitimacy of the Maori Council elections, in which Tukaki was voted out. This letter was written after Tukaki and others brought a case to the Supreme Court to try to challenge the election. The case was thrown out. The letter was unsigned, but there was a list of names headed by Tukaki. However, some individuals on the letter were unaware that their name was attached to the letter and disagreed with its contents.
- After reviewing their accounts, the Maori Council filed a complaint to the police about Tukaki and others regarding funds disbursed at a time when no one had such authority after the election. Newsroom has confirmed that the police have received that complaint and are investigating.
- I reported that a government contract Tukaki signed on behalf of the Māori Council when he was Executive Director, was transferred to another entity under his direction after he left the Māori Council and no longer had the authority to do so. This contract was for over $900,000.
- Yvonne Tahana’s reporting revealed that Tukaki’s claims that he led Drake International through the global financial crisis and had power of attorney for the Southern Hemisphere at the recruiting firm were not true, the company said. He had held the role of general manager for policy and government for a year.
- He also claimed that he was appointed to a board of directors by the UN Secretary-General. A UN spokesman told Tahana that Tukaki’s role was an elected one and not a direct appointment by the Secretary-General. In addition, Tukaki had to resign over “an alleged grave breach of the director’s duties, including misrepresenting himself in meetings with the Australian government.”
- Tahana also reported that Tukaki overcharged Oranga Tamariki in the amount of $60,000. That amount was refunded.
That’s a pretty significant list of issues. Despite this, Tukaki has just been appointed to a government suicide prevention role after resigning from his position at Oranga Tamariki.
It also appears that someone inside the Bijenkorf tipped off Tukaki about the media’s questions. It is beginning to appear that Tukaki is assisted by government ministers and bureaucrats, as any serious investigation could expose a lack of diligence on their part. The questions about Tukaki as an individual also hang over the government that appointed him, which in most cases would make such a person politically accountable.
Many in the wider media are remarkably silent on these issues. To give time to the revelations would be a tacit admission that previous coverage and promotion of Tukaki could be naive and less than thorough.
His time at Oranga Tamariki, on the Māori council and appointment to the suicide body should certainly receive a lot more attention from both the media and those in Wellington.