Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 18, Number 1, 1 January 2001 — Apoliona leads OHA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Apoliona leads OHA

By Ryan Mielke HAUNANI APOLIONA received six votes Dec. 26 to bring her to the helm of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees. The new leadership marks the fourth change at the chair's seat since 199.7. Two candidates for the chair's seat sur-

tacea m tne mucn-anticipated meeting, with former chairman Clayton Hee receiving the other nomination. Prior to the board's selection, both Trustee Hee and Tmstee Apoliona shared glimpses of what they offered OHA's new board. Tmstee Hee outlined a revamped eight-committee stmcture that offered new areas of focus. such as invest-

ments, eeonomie development and banking. Hee placed new tmstees Oswald Stender, Charles Ota and John Waihee IV in positions of leadership. Conversely, Tmstee Apohona outlined her experiences on the board and areas the board needed to address immediately such as federal court cases that challenge the right of OHA to serve Hawaiians in its present form, the Native Hawaiian Comprehensive Master Plan, and continuing the process started by the (Sen. Daniel) Akaka legislation. "I look at the committees and the lead-

ership of the board as one system," she said. She refrained from publicly listing her recommendations for leadership. However, her comments favored the more traditional committee areas already established. "The decision that the Board of Tmstees must make this morning is about the kind of leadership they want for the year 2001," she said, leaving eommittee nominations for another dav.

As of press time, a Board of Trustees meeting was set for Jan. 3 to select committee leadership/membership positions. After both Hee and Apoliona made their presentations, the decision that was a topic of debate in and out of OHA since Nov. 7 was soon made. Five votes went

immediately to Apoliona, with Hee picking up three, partnering with Tmstees Rowena Akana and Charles Ota. Tmstee Stender, wanting to provide the clear winner with more of a mandate, then changed his kānālua vote to a vote for Apoliona. Although she is new to the board's leadership position, she's held virtually every key position of leadership as comerstones of preparation. Chairperson Apoliona first eame to OHA in 1996, resigned her seat on the OHA board in September after the fallout of litigation (related to the Rice vs.

Cayetano decision) that challenged her and other trustees' seats, then was reelected in one of 2000's most hotly contested tmstee races.Her experiences on the board have readied her for one of Hawai'i's closely TSĒ

watched positions ot leadership, having been vice chairwoman under Frenchy DeSoto's leadership from 1997 to 1998. She also served the board as Budget and Finance Committee chair, Legislative and Govemment Affairs Committee chair, and Programs Committee chair.

f ome of her final eomK ments to tmstees and beneficiaries packed into the ^OHA boardroom and spilling W into the corridors outside quoted Queen Lili'uokalani, noting the responsibility of leadership at OHA: "/ could not turn back the timefor the political change, but there is still time to save our heritage. You must remember never to cease to act because youfear you may fail. The way to lose any earthly kingdom is to be inflexible, intolerant, prejudicial. Another way to lose this earthly kingdom is to be too flexible, tolerant oftoo many wrongs and without judgement at all. It is a razor's edge. It is the width ofa blade

ofpili grass. The way to gain the Kingdom ofHeaven is to hear what is not said, to see what eannol be seen and to know the unknowahle. It is the greatest challenge because that is aloha. All things in this world are two. In Heaven, there is but one." ■ At left, Apoliona addresses the packed boardroom prior to her eleehon as chair. Above, a lei-bedecked Apoliona speaks with a reporter after the Dec. 20 lnvestiture.

— : _j Chairperson Apoliona

"D I o o £ > z w o < O

PHOĪO: MIOHAEL MCDONALD