Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 5, Number 10, 1 October 1988 — Accomplishments as Chairman [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]
Accomplishments as Chairman
By Moses K. Keale, Sr. Trustee, Kaua'i and Ni'ihau
'Ano'ai kakou! It has been my privilege to serve you as the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Despite the recent controversy, as a Trustee I still remain firm in my commitment to OHA and to you who have placed your
trust in me. In December of 1986, 1 was elected by my fellow board members as Chairman to lead them through the following two years. Two months short of that term, by a majority vote I was removed from that post by the Board. When 1 took the leadership I shared my vision that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs would move toward becoming the "pu'uhonua", the center or leading force to unite our Hawaiian people and help them achieve their goals and dreams. The past 20 months has marked a steady path towards that pu'uhonua.
The first step on the path was highlighted as the "Year of the Hawaiian." It was a celebration of the past, the present and more importantly it focused on the celebration of the future. The year gave us the time to put our house in order to begin and implement plans for our people. TFiis included a reorganization plan inspired by an outside management audit firm. By-laws, policies, procedures and a master plan were in the works and subsequently all were adopted. Our headquarters were moved to a new loeahon to provide more work space. The staff has increased to better serve you and now 20 months later we are beginning to feel the suc-
cesses. Hawai'i also saw its first Governor of native Hawaiian ancestry as well as the Office of Hawaiian Affairs requesting matching funds to service all native Hawaiians regardless of blood quantum. Another first was OHA's radio program on KCCN and the subsequent news hotline. OHA's poliheal involvement was shared in by the Indigenous Peoples International (IPI) Conference, whieh OHA hosted in Kona. Currently we are trying to better organize the group for more assertive aehon.
This past year we also saw a few firsts for OHA: "Ho'olokahi", a historical accomplishment, called to the Hawaiians to stand as one; the signing of Memoranda of Agreement at various developmental sites that safeguarded many of our historic sites as well as the malama of our ancestors bones. Our kupuna held two major historical eonferences, one on La'au Lapa'au and the larger 'Aha Kupuna: Ku'ikahi Ana Kupuna. The 'opio were not forgotten either as they held the first 'Aha 'Opio Conference.
As Chairman of the Board of Trustees, 1 have been in Washington, D.C., twice this year to attend meetings and to testify in congressional hearings on behalf of the Hawaiian people. 1 also served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of a first-ever federally funded institute on Native Hawaiian Culture and Arts, working in coordination with the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum and the Universitv of Hawaii.
OHA established a Memorandum of Agreement with Indian tribal governments of British Columbia in a touching Honolulu ceremony that was attended by our native Hawaiian Governor. We frequently host members of the Samoan and Maori governments in our office, and recently had visitors from the Australian Office of Aboriginai Affairs and a Torres Strait islander who was assisted
by OHA staff. I had the privilege to be invited by the Governor of Hawaii to attend the birthday celebration of the King of Tonga as a representative of the Hawaiian people in July of this year. In early August OHA sponsored a conference on Native Hawaiian Rights, with resource people coming from the U.S. Senate Select Committee on lndian Affairs to discuss Federal legislation and entitlements. Other speakers eame from New Zealand, Tahiti, and Belau to discuss their native experiences, as well as several attorneys who assist native Americans to regain their rights in the United States.
As you ean see, we are at the very hub of the "international native network" of the Pacific, and reaching out even more at the same time as we are trying to work for the betterment of conditions for our own native people. This month sees the success of the Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund whieh will be administered through OHA. This pilot project will bring in approximately $3 million. We have accomplished a great deal in my tenure as Chairman with our future goals of "Sovereignty," "Self-Determination," and "Restoration" the mandate for OHA to pursue and fight for. I feel a great responsibility to stabilize OHA by building a strong foundation that must be able to withstand the pressures — both internal and external — that are sure to eome as we become a larger and stronger organization.
The work is difficult and exhausting at the same time that it is challenging and exciting. But perhaps that is the paradox of being a native in today's world, and it is one that I accept. Yes, OHA is rapidly approaching that pu'uhonua. Na kealoha o ke akua lani e ala kai ia kakou apau e na Hawaii.