PAKEHA TRIBUTE TO MAORI MINISTER

Evening Star, Issue 22146, 28 September 1935, Page 9

PAKEHA TRIBUTE TO MAORI MINISTER

GREAT WDRK OF SIB. A. NGATA [From Our Parliamentary Reporter.! WELLINGTON, September 27. Forty years’ experience of the Native problem was mentioned by Mr Broadfoot (Waitomo) as his qualification for discussing the Native land development movement and its success. He told the House during the Financial Debate that £900,000 had been spent in five years, and although it was accepted generally that it took five years to get land into proper production, the Native people had actually paid back to the Exchequer £350,000. This was a credit to the former Native Minister, who had a great conception and laid the framework of the credit which would come to the Government for putting the plan into action. He knew the difference it had made to the Native people of his district. For years they had been accustomed to living on rents and the proceeds of land sales. Prosperity acted as a narcotic, so that they failed to realise the importance of the gospel of work. They had to be brought to see its value, and it was a source of great satisfaction that in a few short years 1,500 separate Maori holdings had been created. Ho did not wish to be critical, but owing to the change in the administration there seemed to be some torpidity, with the result that instead of expanding, some of the schemes were more or less standing stiff.