Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 13, Number 9, 1 September 1996 — Making OHA pono... [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Making OHA pono...

bv Rowena Akana Trustee-at-Large You can't wave a magic wand and expect to make OHA pono. But that hasn't stopped a number of individuals from publicly demanding that "OHA be made

pono." If they are to succeed, those seeking change must make more of a commitment than just talking about it. Meaningful changes will occur only through dedication, tenacity, and a genuine effort to learn and understand what's wrong at OHA. After all, how ean you fix something if you don't know what's broken? So, where do you begin? You start the

process by getting involved. It's that simple and yet, it's that difficult. Change must eome from within, but the demand for change must eome from "outside" — from OHA's beneficiaries. It's a personal eommitment few are willing to make. For years, I have advocated change at OHA, starting at the top. The message from OHA's beneficiaries is clear. OHA's leadership needs major fixing. Yet, if our beneficiaries don't do more to demand accountability from our Chairman and his

majority-rule, then the status quo will remain unchallenged and nothing will ever change. The apparent apathy of our beneficiaries is painfully evident during OHA board and community meetings. Attendance is encouraged, but turnouts are disappointing. Laek of involvement begets

. apathy — apathy begets dysfunction. The ongoing battle for accountability at OHA is clearly diminished by it. There have been numerous attempts to trivialize ongoing debate among OHA trustees by labeling it "petty squabbles" and "infighting." Using these labels to undermine the legitimate efforts of trustees and hiding behind them to promote hidden agenda is not

pono. Supporting a slate of candidates who'll end up pushing the same agenda is not pono. Active dissension among trustees has always been an integral part of the democratic process. If all nine trustees were of like mind, a false perception of pono would exist, but the interests of our beneficiaries would not be served. As with the Legislature, City Council, and boardrooms around the world, differing points of view should never be discouraged.What should be discouraged are attempts by spe-

cial-interest groups to capitalize on this democratic process to serve their own agenda. As an example, organizations such as Hui Kalai'āina have spent thousands of dollars in printed ads proclaiming, "OHA must be made pono." Yet, how many members of Hui Kalai'āina have taken the time or effort to attend any of our official meetings? Except for Bruss Keppeler, an active Hawaiian civic club member, I can't recall anyone from Hui Kalai'āina ever coming in to sit down with trustees to discuss any of their concerns. This laek of direct involvement is apathy of a different color. With a history of non-participation at OHA, the organization's motives become suspect. Hui Kalai'āina claims it has no slate of candidates for the upcoming OHA trustee elections. Ads say candidates will be selected from among its members. Yet, there have been complaints by OHA beneficiaries that letters have been sent out to alumni of Kamehameha Schools, soliciting support for specific candidates. And what is the real relationship between Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estāte (KS/BE) and Hui Kalai'āina? We know that employees of KS/BE have designed and placed full-page ads in OHA's paper. In fact, their ads have appeared in the last eight consecutive issues at a cost of nearly

$13,000. That's a lot of money for an ad that, on its face, says so little. What is Hui Kalai'āina's true agenda and will its eventual slate of OHA candidates really represent the interests of Hawaiians or the speeial interests of a select group? In all fairness, perhaps Hui Kalai'āina is just the brainchild of a handful of energetic KS/BE employees and does not enjoy the full support or knowledge of KSBE alumni or its trustees. Regardless, the bottom line is, if Hui Kalai'āina's mission is to make OHA pono , what are its members doing to find out what needs improving? Electing new trustees at OHA isn't the cure-all that Hui Kalai'aina suggests. It won't automatically make OHA pono. It will take more than that — mueh more. It will take keeping our leadership accountable for its actions and demanding open governance by all. It will take controlling OHA's administration to ensure proper fiseal management, accountability to trustees, and protection of our entitlements and trust assets. Most of all, it will take the active and dedicated involvement of all our beneficiaries, not just those who have made it a practice to attend our meetings. It will take all these things to make OHA pono — and then some. . i Lillii