Taking back the power

The chairman of Ngati Awa’s financial arm approved a $3.8 million contract with a carbon management company without gaining his board’s approval first.

Outlined in an Audit Committee report, the incident was described as “a serious breach in the organisation’s internal controls”.

The report had been based on an audit by the international accounting firm, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, that was commissioned to review the financial reports of Te Runanga o Ngati Awa (TRONA) and Ngati Awa Group Holdings Ltd (NAGHL).

“This is in regard to the (NAGHL) chairman and a NAGHL director not following prescribed processes for investment decisions and not obtaining the required NAGHL board approval,” the report noted.

NAGHL is the subsidiary which takes care of the tribe’s financial assets. It is governed by a five-person board and chaired by formal civil servant Wira Gardiner.

According to the report Sir Gardiner and NAGHL director Graham Pryor executed the $3.8 million contract with CO2 New Zealand Management Company without first taking it to the NAGHl board for approval.

At the time Mr Pryor was also a director of the carbon management company that had received the contract.

“The director advised the chairman that the board had some time approved the contract. There is no documentary evidence (minutes or other record) to evidence apart from a “heads of agreement” with CO2 that had been signed much earlier and pror to due diligence and legal review.”

In addition Mr Pryor also failed to pass on legal advice received by him but addressed to the board. The advice, which was about the situation, raised serious issues concerning the suitability of the investment and contract for Ngati Awa.

It was also noted that there has been poor documentation in regard to services provided in lieu of repayment of a loan balance. The loan was not disclosed in the report.

As a result the Audit Committee requested a policy around conflicts of interest be drafted. The report was presented to the Te Runanga o Ngati Awa board at the meeting in November.

At the board meeting in February the chief executive of Te Runanga o Ngati Awa, Enid Ratahi-Pryor, presented the Conflict of Interest policy.

Mrs Rātahi-Pryor said the runanga was in danger because it didn’t have a policy around this area. She asked the board to approve it in principle and she would return at the next meeting with feedback.

“The runanga does not have a policy and this places the runanga at risk.”

She also said that she had commissioned her own independent report.

“I’m surprised about PWC, that they didn’t go down to these levels and identify places where changes could be made… I’m concerned that there was a $900,000 budget blowout in previous years.

“Rogue spending is quite easy by the CEO but we just need to know how they get through the systems. I know how they got through the systems.”

It was also noted by Nga Maihi representative Regina O’Brien that the board had failed to discuss the report in any comprehensive manner at the previous meeting.

“The audit report got five minutes because we were in a hurry to go to lunch.”

Her point was backed by Poroporo kaumatua and board member Joe Mason, who acknowledged that the report had raised important points.

“The audit committee meeting report needs to be considered by the board. It is important document and it deserves consideration by the board. There is no harm however in a special meeting to have a look at the document.

“There are some important recommendations in the document. There is no harm, if there is a special take, of calling a special meeting.”

The board elected to discuss the report at a workshop to be held at a later date.

Ok, with all that explained the big questions for me are: is Graham Pryor still a director of NAGHL? And what processes are there so that individuals cannot spend tribal money without first gaining approval?

This makes it two more questions for Mrs Ratahi-Pryor to answer at the meeting with Ngati Hokopu to be held at Wairaka Marae tonight.

Which brings us to the meeting and I have to commend Mrs Ratahi-Pryor for wanting to come.

I have already posed several questions through this blog and I can assure there will be many from others in the crowd tonight. Some will be uncomfortable.

There are not many who would stand in the face of criticism and offer to explain how it went so bad. I think it goes a long way that Mrs Ratahi-Pryor is willing to come and answer our questions kanohi ki te kanohi.

I also applaud her decision to conduct her own audit. Obviously she is also concerned about some of the tribe’s expenditure.

And clearly the terms of reference for the audit by PWC did not include the decisions around investments or any of the processes around it, it just looked at the financial recordings.

But it must also be remembered Mrs Ratahi-Pryor was a board member and a director on NAGHL when a lot of this spending was going on – if she didn’t know what was going on, what hope do we have?

We are the people and I reckon it’s time we took back the power.