Mai Maketu, ki Tongariro, ki te ao.
Nā te whetū tātaki o pohewa, o pito-mata, o pahawa koe i ārahi i te ara i whakaterea ai e Tama-te-Kapua. Nō reira tō kiri ka pūioio ai i te pānga atu a Tāwhirimātea ki a koe, ki tō waka tīpuna. Ka tau ki whenua tautangata, ki tua i te kitenga o Ihenga. Ki reira kohia ai ngā kura o pae tawhiti, tuituia ai ki tō korowai, mauria mai ai ki pae tata.
Inā noa nei koe ka mahue i a Te Moana-Nui-a-Kiwa, i a Te Arawa waka. Ahakoa i whakangungua ai koe e ngā rākau a te Pākehā, ko koe e pūmau tonu nei ki ō kawa. Koia ka kī: tamaiti ākona ki te marae, te toronga ki te ao whānui, te ūnga ki Matawhaura, tau ana.
Nā whai ake ka piua e koe āu rākau ki te pakanga, nā tō matua anō i tutū, mō te mana motuhake te take. Ka tau koe ki tō whakaariki – ko koutou, ko Damian, ko Tā Tio. Kia eke atu ki runga ki te paepae amorangi a Māngai Nui, Upoko Tū Takitaki. E tū hei māngai mo tō tātou iwi Māori ki te motu whānui. Nōnei ka mōhio ai tēnei tira ki te aroha me te whakaiti.
Kei tō mātou māreikura, kua rangatira tō Kāhui i āu tini whakaakoranga. Ko ō pūmanawa, he nui, he whānui pērā i ngā pūmanawa e waru o Te Arawa e kapakapa nei, mōhou kua eke ki te tāpuhipuhitanga. Waiho mātou kia pīkau tonu i ō wawata. Eke panuku tō eke, eke Tangaroa tō eke.
Ko Pikiao te tangata, nō Aotearoa te whiwhi. Tēnā koe.
To our leader, Kiri. You followed the path of your tīpuna across oceans to sharpen your tools. You have brought these lessons home and brought distant horizons closer to your people. Despite the law being your weapon of choice, you have always held fast to te ao Māori and the values you were taught at home. You represent everything Kāhui strives to be; selfless in the fight for our people. Not only have you been our commander, you have done such with empathy, humility and unshakable groundedness. Now, your leadership has been recognised and is called for elsewhere. This firm could not thank you with words, rather we hope we can continue on the path you have paved for us. Your whānau, hapū and iwi are fortunate because of you, and now so too is our judiciary. We are proud of you, congratulations.
Attorney General’s announcement – https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/high-court-judge-appointed-9
