Te Kotahitanga o Te Iwi o Ngāti Wehi Wehi

Ngāti Wehi Wehi is located in Manakau, which is the most southern part of the Horowhenua District. Ngāti Wehi Wehi also covers part of the Kāpiti Coast District Council and Wellington Regional Council boundaries. 

Memorandum of Partnership

A Memorandum of Partnership (MOP) was signed between Te Kotahitanga o Te Iwi o Ngāti Wehi Wehi and Horowhenua District Council on 12 November 2012.

The MOP was signed by Mayor Brendan Duffy, Horowhenua District Council Chief Executive David Ward, Ngāti Wehi Wehi Chairman Richard Orzecki and Kaumatua Bob Miratanaat the Ngāti Wehi Wehi marae in Manakau in front of more than 25 iwi members, Council staff and Councillors Victoria Kaye-Simmons, Tony Rush and Garry Good.

It was the fourth Memorandum of Partnership to be signed with local iwi, and was called an “auspicious occasion” for the whānau/hapū and iwi members by Mr Orzecki.

Te Pepeha o Ngāti Wehi Wehi / Whakapapa | Ngāti Wehi Wehi Introductions / Genealogy

Ko Tararua te paepae maungaroa - Tararua is the stretched out mountain

Ko Horowhenua te whenua nui - Horowhenua is the great land mass

Ko Tainui te waka ekenga - Tainui is the canoe that stands here

Ko Waikawa rāua ko Manakau ngā awa tere - Waikawa and Manakau are the flowing rivers

Ko Kukukohatu te whenua - Kukukohatu is the land of the marae

Ko Raukawa Te Au ki Te Tonga te iwi whānui  - Ngāti Raukawa is the wider iwi whose waters flow to the south

Ko Ngāti Wehi Wehi te iwi e tau nei - Ngāti Wehi Wehi are the people of the land

Ko Wehi Wehi rātou ko Tamatatai, ko Rangitawhia ko Pihaka ngā hapū - Wehi Wehi, Tamatatai, Rangitawhia and Pihika are the ancestral chiefs of old

Ko Wehi Wehi rāua ko Patiharuru ngā tūpuna whare - Wehi Wehi is the chief and Patiharuru is his wife, the names of our ancestral houses

Ko Kotahitanga Te Kohanga Reo e manaaki i a mātou tamariki - Kotahitanga is the Köhanga Reo which nurtures its young      

Tihei mauri oho, mauri tū, mauri ora ki Te Whei Ao, ki Te Ao Mārama! – It is the breath of life that awakens, that stands, that gives life to the new dawn!

Ngāti Wehi Wehi is a Tainui waka confederation iwi with strong ancestral origins back to the Waikato. In the 1820’s Ngāti Wehi Wehi ancestors migrated to the Manawatū/Rangitīkei regions, alongside their close Ngāti Toa Rangatira relations. These early ancestors also settled the Huritini/Waikawa/Manakau area establishing a number of active marae in various areas. Today Manakau is the tūrangawaewae for the people of Ngāti Wehi Wehi.

Ngāti Wehi Wehi exercises spiritual guardianship over the lands, mountains and rivers of Waikawa and Manakau and is an active contributor to Raukawa ki Te Tonga tribal affairs and enjoys a harmonious relationship with its neighbouring iwi and the Horowhenua District Council.

Te Kotahitanga o Te Iwi o Ngāti Wehi Wehi, was legally established as a Māori marae entity under the Reservations provisions of Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993. It serves to represent the needs of whānau, hapū and iwi affiliated members of Te Kotahitanga o Te Iwi o Ngāti Wehi Wehi and its mandate is affirmed each year at annual general meetings.

Ngāti Wehi Wehi exercised in 1840, and continues to exercise, mana and tino rangatiratanga over their ancestral lands. No other iwi could speak or make decisions for Ngāti Wehi Wehi without first being authorised by Ngāti Wehi Wehi to do so. Ngāti Wehi Wehi operate their affairs independently from other iwi in accordance with tikanga Māori. Ngāti Wehi Wehi have occupied their traditional rohe in the Manawatū, Huritini, Waikawa and Manakau areas from pre-Treaty times to the present day.

Marae

Wehi Wehi: 940 State Highway 1, Manakau. 

Contact information

Ngāti Wehi Wehi Marae
PO Box 9, Manakau
Phone: 06 362 6773
Website: www.wehiwehi.maori.nz

Ngāti Wehi Wehi Marae Trustees Management Committee (MTMC).

Patricia Jacobs
Chairperson
027 474 9925
paddy.jacobs.pj@gmail.com