MANA LETTERS

Mana (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 15, 23 February 1978, Page 2

MANA LETTERS

Friends, Enclosed is a renewal for my personal subscription for 1978. After reading the paper I pass it on to one of the many Island families at this school. Best wishes for success, Kia ora koutou katoa, Rolf K. Baxter, Principal, Royal Road School, Massey, Auckland, 8. Friends, It is pleasing to see that a newspaper such as Mana can continue to flourish in our difficult economic times and so provide a voice for the Polynesian ethnic groups, many of whom are caught up in the economic and social difficulties facing our country. I hope that Mana will continue to expand in order to provide advice and encouragement — to these people facing problems but I would also like to see more discussion in English as well as the Polynesian languages, of individual customs and beliefs that cause embarrassment and misunderstandings in our multicultural (?) society. Only by discussing these things more fully will Polynesian and Polynesian, as well as Polynesian and non-Polynesian, come closer together and I believe that only Mana is in a position to provide a forum for such discussions. I wish you every success for the future. Keith Lees Port Ohope

This is the abridged text of a letter written by the manager of a

major New Zealand insurance company in response to MANA’s lead story on Polynesians being ripped off by an insurance agent from this company (see MANA November 1977). * * * Dear Sir, I am as concerned as you that salesmen employed by our Society should oversell to anyone whether they be Polynesians or otherwise and for your information our Agents are trained not to oversell. I have investigated your allegations regarding our insurance agent and I am quite certain that he is not overselling to anyone. He is a very experienced Life Assurance Consultant. The quality of the business he writes is excellent and from what I know of his activities, he takes a personal interest in his clients. The $5 weekly with $16,000 of cover is not considered to be very high in today’s present circumstances. $16,000 would only represent about 3 years’ salary if an unexpected death occured. I might add that this Society has paid death claims on Polynesians ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 with only two or three years premiums paid. The agent usually prepares a quote of $5 weekly for his prospects which is a good way of explaining how life assurance works showing bonuses, tax deductions etc. It is usually left to the prospect, if he is interested, to decide how much he would like to spend on such cover which can be worked out from the quote of $5 weekly.

As a result of your letter (ACORD letter and MANA article) I have instructed our Auck-

land Manager, that he is to make sure that his agents are not overselling to anyone and I would be pleased if you are not satisfied with the activities of any of our agents that you write to me immediately. Friends, I must congratulate you on the excellent way MANA is being produced. I think you have now ‘got something’ worthy of the support of all Island peoples in Auckland. I have been striving for a considerable time to gain support from certain influential people here for a newspaper for the Polynesians in New Zealand. Edmund Stehlin, Consul (Commercial) Western Samoa Consulate AUCKLAND.