Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 15, Number 10, 1 October 1998 — ʻ98 candidates in focus [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ʻ98 candidates in focus

The views and opinions expressed in '98 candidates infocus are of the individual candidates and do not necessarily reflect those of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.

Everyday things in Iife, enjoyed by ali, are very often taken for granted. The day is Nov. 4, the year 2198. A history book is opened to a page that reads "Hawaiian - a Polynesian race that onee lived in the Pacific, now referred to as the 50th state of the United States of America." The respect and love for my family who have gone before me and for those I will leave behind perpetuates my determination and purpose to assist the Hawaiian populaee in their forward momentum toward achieving their goals. The qualities I offer are: managerial; administrative; research; preciseness; problem solving; logic; understanding; fairness; perseverance; truthfulness; ethics; eommon sense, and a love of the people of whieh I am one. Hawaiian affairs are of the Hawaiian people. The depth of involvement into the affairs of the Hawaiian people must be to the extent and direction as determined by these people. Resolutions ean only eome to pass

when truth and conviction in determining what is right is enjoyed by all involved. The most important element of any particular race is the identification of one's self as a member of that race. To identify one's self as a member of that race, one's name must be recorded in the registry of that race by that race. This registry must be the only legal reference when referring to Hawaiian affairs. Should the race choose not to aeknowledge restrictions bestowed on them by others, such as quantum, residence requirements, country of birth, voting rights, and maybe a few others, but instead could choose to rebuild their race by starting a qualifying registry of their own that would designate their racial heritage as Hawaiian and/or part Hawaiian should they choose. How to aeeomplish this, what qualification and who is to do it, will be referred to in another chapter. Sovereigntv. A feeling of uncertainty, felt by many of Hawaiian ancestry, is due

to the insufficient knowledge of resolving circumstances of similar situations. There is no previously recorded or documented step-by-step procedure of resolving the Hawaiian Sovereignty issue. However, the situation is unique and there is always a solution to every problem. You just have to look hard enough. Of course, support, unity, perseverance, sacrifice and many other similar qualities must be present to be successful. This situation being different from all others, requires the solution be different from any other. We should not compare or imitate what others may have for we are not like any other. No other may ha\ e our problems, but then no other may have the opportunities that we may find. I congratulate, with great admiration, all of you who are directly or indirectly striving toward the culmination of a unique people into a unified nation. I am at your service. William Kaho'owaiwai Kamau IH, OHA candidate. ■

| Why do you want to be an OHA 1 trustee? OHA has assisted thousands of HawaiI ians since its ineepūon. In spite of this, and in spite of its tremendous potential, I the office has been a big disappointment I to many. The good OHA has aeeomI plished has been overshadowed by 1 trustees who have at times brought OHA's business to a grinding halt by boycotting meetings, engaging in power plays and exhibiting mean behavior toward one another and staff. This undermines morale, robs the Hawaiian 1 people of leadership they ean trust, creI ates pessimism about the future and 1 damages our credibility with the larger I community. Precious time and resources a have been wasted while the Hawaiian people have been either unaware or forced to put up with the situation. OHA needs to continue its transition beyond these old ways of doing business so that our dream of a healthy, vibrant proud Hawaiian people ean be fulfilled. What qualities would you bring to the position? Absolute, unconditional, proven dedieaīion to the betterment of Hawaiians. As administrator and executive director of the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation an attorney and professional staff responsible for successful outcomes on behalf of thousand of Hawaiian families by stopping the loss of kuleana and other

ancestral lands through adverse possession in quiet title cases; by restoring and prioritizing water use for kuleana and Hawaiian Homelands; by forcing the state to acknowledge trust duties owed to beneficiaries of the Hawaiian Homelands and ceded land trusts; and by winning major court victories, including the PASH decision, whieh affirmed traditional and customary rights of access and gathering, and a more recent case whieh declared unconstitutional the state's attempt to ignore thousands in the Hawaiian Homes claims process. I believe my most important contribution has been creating and sustaining a highly charged, positive work environment in whieh trained professionals have been motivated to put forth their best efforts on behalf of the Hawaiian people. What do you consider the most important issues confronting the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and/or the Hawaiian people? (1) Eeonomie security so that we ean keep our families together and at home inHawai'i. We know what worked in the past is no longer viable — large-scale agribusiness is phasing out; no-holds barred development has devastated our cultural and physical landscape. OHA ean provide technical support for eom-munity-based planning; financing for viable subsistence/culturally-based as well as high tech enterprises; work with

banks and other lenders to improve financing for businesses; support development of a skilled, high tech work force so we ean recruit locally. These are just some of the steps OHA ean take to improve our eeonomie future. (2) Sovereignty encompasses the spiritual, political, eeonomie, social and eultural aspirations of our people. Some conservatives do not believe sovereignty is necessary because they feel as a people, we already have many resources at ourdisposal. They point to the ali'i trusts and the tremendous progress we have made in securing compensation from the state for past breaches of the Hawaiian Homelands and ceded lands trusts. Yet the savagery found in other struggles for political independence eannot be lost on those who witness the struggle by Hawaiians to regain ea and their 'āina pono'ī. While I believe we will never resort to violence, the commitment to restoring our nation must be steadfast because our kūpuna have kept us on track. We cannot let them or our future generations down. If you could only accomplish one goal as an OHA trustee, what would it be? It would be to have played a constructive role in the restoration of Kanaka Maoli sovereignty. ■

William K. Kamau III At-Large

Māhealani Kamau'u At-Large