12 Feb 2014

Ngati Maru to sort tribal identity

6:55 am on 12 February 2014

Taranaki iwi Ngati Maru needs to draw the line over who is a descendant to ensure the tribe isn't influenced by members of other iwi, a trustee says.

Te Runanga o Ngati Maru ki Taranaki trustee Holden Hohaia.

Te Runanga o Ngati Maru ki Taranaki trustee Holden Hohaia. Photo: RNZ

The Maori Land Court appointed interim trustees to Ngati Maru in 2012 after discovering the tribe's membership register and finances were not in order.

Te Runanga o Ngati Maru ki Taranaki trustee Holden Hohaia says nearly half its 800 registered members do not have enough information to prove they are descendants of Ngati Maru.

He says former trustees have not been robust in the way they have validated registrations and have signed up whanau with no clear confirmation they are of Ngati Maru descent.

Mr Hohaia believes it's important that people from outside the iwi can't influence Ngati Maru decision making as it heads into the Treaty of Waitangi settlement process.