PARLIAMENT

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3196, 21 September 1917, Page 6

PARLIAMENT

, TEE OASE. OF RINGI KERIHOMAj The House of Representatives met at 2.30 p.m. ■' The report of the Public Trustee was laid on the table by Sir Joseph Ward. Mc. J. T. SI. HORNSBY (wairarapa) referred to .the case of Eangi Keriboma, a Maori, who was deprived of property through the action of the representative of the Public Trustee in Jlasterton. The Publio Trustee, in mentioning the affair, said that in his opinion a publio inquiry by commission should be held in order that the full facts might be made known. Mr. Hornsby said that the man concerned was at present in America, but an inquiry should be held without fur- - ther delay in order to clear the name of the Public Trust Office. Proceedings had been delayed for threo years already. The records of the transactions were in the hands of the Public Trustee and they should be investigated. The Hon. A. L. HERDMAN (AttorneyGeneral) said that the case had been brought under his notice by Mr. Horns-" by and Sir Walter Buchanan., He had sent statements procured by Sir Walter Buchanan to the Public Trustee, with, an \ instruction that a Ml investigation should be made. Tho Public Trustee's report, forwarded some time later; had said that the transactions between ithe Maori and the Masterton agent cfStha Public Trust Office had a bad complexion, and had - recommended that tne' agency should be terminated. done. The Public Trust Office had not been directly concerned in the matter. The agent had acted in his private capacity, and after the termination of his connection with the office the-Pnblio Trustee had handed full information tothe Maori's legal representative, who had. recovered some ' £15,000 of the money taken improperly from the young man during his minority. . • SIR JOSEPH WARD (Minister of Finance, said it was important that the matter should be cleared up completely. Some, people had got an ideathat the Public Trust Office had been implicated in the defrauding of .tho Maori lad. This was not the case, ihe office agent of the Public Trustee at Masterton had sot himself appointed atto-. ney for the Maori, who had spent during tho first year after attaining his majority. Tho whole of this money had passed through the hands of the agent, who had also secured possession ot a large area of the Natives land. A partial refund had been made leral proceedings. Sir Joseph Ward added that he intended to send the papers to the Crown Law with the objoct of seeine if a. criminal prosecution should be undertaken. If not, a full .inquiry would be made. There wouU te no ™- necessary delay in dealing finally with passing the Sale of Liquor Restriction Bill (as reported elsewhere) tho •House adjourned at 8.4S p.m.