Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 1, 1 January 1995 — Aloha nui from Billie Beamer [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Aloha nui from Billie Beamer

by Billie Beamer Trustee-At-Large Thank you to those who vested me with your trust to represent all beneficiaries as a trustee-at-large. MY PRIORITY: At this critical juncture of our new history, our very primary effort must

be to make ourse!ves "whole" and credible. Every Hawaiian is different, our wholeness is the encouragement of exchange. To disagree is not to fragment. "Heaven forbid that we shou!d all think alike as Hawaiians." Whal is important is that we take the best from eaeh

view. Our goal is not to collect a cult of fol!owers, but to create an informed self-determining and scrutinizing body. OHA'S TASK IS: To provide aeeurate information and the historical lcssons for us to make the long-term

decisions needed for any sovereignty determination. The criterion for action "that the noisy, squeaky wheel gets the oil" must stop. Group acts and demonstrations cannot only feed anger, they should work towards our mission. And, what is our mission? Are we informed sovereign individuals, or part of an ignorant herd following a perceived messiah? MY IMMEDIATE CONCERN IS THAT WE ARE NOT READY FOR A PLEBISCITE. I URGE ITS DELAY UNTIL WE ARE THOROUGHLY BRIEFED. • The format has never been fully addressed in hearings. • Twenty individuals will not set the parameters of my future. • Pieeemeal emotional acts are imprudent extravagances that eome back to haunt us. The hurry forecasts the same problems we suffer today incurred by the past haste. • THE HAWAIIAN HOMES COMMISSION ACT, BLOOD QUANTUM, has been difficult to implement. • In 1978. the rush to create OHA by historically uninformed delegates eompounded the dilemma of the disproportionate funding without questioning the Hawaiian Home Lands directors who slaved through BIood Priorities 1, 2, and 3 to make awards fair. • Now, we must not disregard the need

to take the time to establish VERIFIABLE PROOF OF THE RIGHT TO VOTE IN OHA'S ELECTIONS. NonHawaiian infiltration will taint our decisions and create a legal nightmare. Don't believe the nonsense that we ean vote now for the plebiscite then become informed later. Example: EVEN A YES OR NO

REQUIRES UNDERSTANDING. Do I know the advantages to accrue to the now statc- and federally controIIed programs like DHHL, ALU LIKE, KAHO'OLAWE, or OHA, IN A SOVEREIGN STATE? What will be the advantages for eaeh:

• To remain in the State? • To become part of an independent entity in the State? • To become a trust? • What will be the source of funding? • Where are the preliminary discussions pertaining to reparations or dis-

position of ceded lands? • Do we have any idea where the nonHawaiians stand? If we vote YES for sovereignty, the next prescribed step is to elect delegates. Then, shouIdn't we vote for delegates who believe as we do in the complex formation of the birth of a new nation? If we don't know the generalized effects of all of the above options how will our candidate know? The last eoneem is the type of politieal entity that will accommodate our preferences, yet, is it being discussed first? SAMUEL KAMAKAU gives PONO the definition of putting things in order. Let's make orderly informed decisions this time. No more quickie Maheles, DHHLs, OHAs and Kaho'olawes by committees. Please know that my home telephone is always open to you. 521-2256. Our office hours are from 8:00 to 4:00. I and my aide, Roy Ah Nee, will treat you with respect and honor your dignity. I will expect that you will treat us in the same manner. My te!evision shows on public access will continue, listed in the papers as "Billie Beainer" on channels 22, 24, and 26. If I do not serve you honest!y, with respect, and legally, get me out. Mahalo nui.