Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 15, Number 11, 1 November 1998 — Chairperson's message [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Chairperson's message

Reflections: Changes and challenges ^ LAWE I ke a'o a mālama, a e 'oi mau ka na'auao - "He who ■■ takes his teachings and applies them increases his knowlL edge." In the year since I became chair of OHA, I have had many opportunities to reflect and practice this 'ōlelo no'eau. Eaeh week has been a hard lesson about the difficulty of making changes, eaeh meeting a reminder that votes count, eaeh debate an exercise in ha'aha'a. There were some who were surprised I would take the difficult action and vote to reorganize OHA's leadership. After all, my involvement with OHA spans the two decades since the birth of the idea in the State Constitutional Convention Hawaiian Affairs Commit-

tee that I chaired. On paper, Frenchy DeSoto should be the ultimate incumbent - manied to the status quo. But even at this old age, I ean recognize that when change is needed, we have a responsibility to be part of the change. OHA had become reliant on a chairman who took no one's counsel but his own, made unilateral decisions and allocated resources we are only now discovering. He is an akamai, politically experienced trustee - whieh made it all the sadder that he would choose to mle in that way. It was Tmstee Billie Beamer who eame to see me and made me think hard about what to do. We were both in the then-majority. Ifwe didn't rock the boat, we had power. The turning point occurred when we understood the necessity to make sure the power was shared. As the kūpuna trustees, we had a

special duty to bring the newer, younger members along. In turn, we benefitted from their positive

attitudes, new ideas and experiences. Together, we are truly a stronger team than we are apart.

This past year has not been without its bumps. Ironically, the test of inclusive leadership is that some will constantly test the limits, as if to prove that inclusiveness is somehow a weakness. Too often, this has looked like fighting. Auē! It has been difficult for some to give up personal differences for the betterment of the people and the advancement of the causes. OHA's intemal operations are only now coming into procedural order, as previous audit recommendations are implemented. All of the :trustees, rather than one, are becoming knowledgeable in the proper management and investment of trust funds. Committees actively research, debate and recommend action. We have awarded more than $7.7 million in grants. Tmstees hold public forums, such as the BOP series earlier this year, to keep beneficiaries informed and active. These are some of the positive

changes of this long year. There is still mueh to do. As we enter the last year of this century, unfinished business often keeps me awake at night. We face unprecedented challenges. There are those who would deliberately divide us by blood quantum or eeonomie class or who would drive wedges between us and people who might otherwise be our allies. The successes of the past two decades - cultural recognition and practices, access, use of 'ōlelo Hawai'i, ceded land revenues, laws protecting the iwi, restoring Hawaiian Home Lands - are at risk if we aren't vigilant. We must look always to the next challenge, and the next. As I reflect on lessons of the past year, and the challenges of the future, I am pa'a with the decision to change and to share leadership. E lauhoe mai nā wa'a; i ke kā, i ka hoe; i ka hoe, i ke kā; pae aku i ka 'āina. ■

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