Summarised by Centrist
Far North District councillors have voted to remove Councillor Davina Smolders from Te Kūaka, the council’s Māori strategic relationships committee, following months of disagreement over its structure and the role of unelected iwi and hapū representatives.
Te Kūaka includes six elected councillors alongside iwi and hapū representatives who have voting rights. It makes recommendations to the full council, which retains final decision-making authority.
Smolders has described the arrangement as “undemocratic and extremely concerning” and has also opposed proposed strategic relationship agreements between the council and five iwi, arguing they would amount to “ceding sovereignty”.
Before Thursday’s vote, Smolders argued allegations about her conduct should first be dealt with through the council’s Code of Conduct process.
“This motion seeks adverse consequences against me based on allegations about my conduct,” she said, adding that proceeding without allowing her to respond risked denying her “natural justice and procedural fairness”.
Mayor Moko Tepania rejected that argument.
“This is not a Code of Conduct hearing; this is simply the power that this council has to appoint moving forward,” he said.
Māori ward councillor Arohanui Allen said removing Smolders would not prevent her scrutinising Te Kūaka.
“This motion does not silence Councillor Smolders,” Allen said.
The motion passed 7 votes to 3, with one abstention. Councillors Rachel Baucke, Ann Court and Smolders voted against the motion.
Re-published from the Centrist with permission
