Before travelling to Tahiti in 2025 for the Raro Mata‘i Festival, I met with approximately twenty rangatira and kaumātua of Hokianga. There was collective agreement that Kupe should be returned home to Hokianga, that all of the kōiwi should remain together as one, and that I would represent Hokianga in relation to the kaupapa of Raro Mata'i. It was also agreed that once the kōiwi returned, a hui would be called in Hokianga so the people could properly honour our tūpuna together.

Part of the urgency surrounding the kaupapa was that there were other groups attempting to reach Maupiti before us in order to uplift the remaining kōiwi themselves. We could not allow that to happen. Because of the seriousness and sensitivity of the matter, I took the issue to a higher level and sought guidance and direction directly from the twenty kaumātua of Hokianga. Leading up to the return, I made many public announcements throughout Waitangi, Ngāpuhi, and Hokianga regarding Kupe’s return. I also personally sent more than 700 emails to marae, whānau, and individuals throughout Hokianga inviting participation in the kaupapa. Only around ten people responded. I also made over 50 kanohi ki te kanohi visits personally.

Email communication became the main form of outreach because we simply did not have the financial resources to physically travel from marae to marae throughout Hokianga. The costs associated with travel, marae hosting, and kai obligations were well beyond the limited budget we had available. After the kōiwi returned home, perspectives began to change. Some kaumātua wanted Kupe associated only with their own marae, sacred maunga, or local interests, despite the earlier collective agreement that the kōiwi would remain together as one. Attempts to organise a wider North Hokianga hui were ultimately not supported by leadership, and there were also efforts by some individuals to take control of the kaupapa after much of the difficult work had already been completed.

Land was also offered at one point in relation to the kaupapa, but that offer was later withdrawn. From my perspective, part of the difficulty was that some kaumātua did not want to fully acknowledge or support the appointment of myself and my wife as Poutiriao of our tūpuna Kupe. As tensions and disagreements emerged around authority, responsibility, and direction of the kaupapa, the offer of land was eventually retracted. At the same time, Ngāpuhi researchers were contacting whānau in Tahiti to verify aspects of the kaupapa. In response, I invited direct kanohi ki te kanohi discussion so matters could be discussed openly and respectfully. There was no reply.

From my perspective, too many conversations happened around the kaupapa rather than directly within it. Politics, personalities, territorial interests, and competing agendas distracted from what should have remained the central focus: honouring our tūpuna Kupe. I also sensed resistance from some political and established religious sectors who did not want IO and Kupe returning into prominence within the consciousness of our people. Today, some of the kōiwi have been placed by Allen Hessel at Arai Te Uru. The remaining kōiwi have been placed within a sacred hidden location that will never be publicly revealed, in order to protect and maintain the mana of our tūpuna, Kupe. It is important to remember that there are many descendants of Kupe throughout Aotearoa, not only within Hokianga. The significance of Kupe’s return reaches far beyond one region alone. Starting with Tuamotu, Manihiki, Rarotonga, Ra‘iātea and Maupiti.

Although the opportunity to collectively honour Kupe was missed at this time, I still believe the return of Kupe remains one of the most significant ancestral events of our generation. And the time to properly celebrate and honour his return will still come — with the right people, the right intentions, and the focus placed where it always should have been: upon the mana of our tūpuna and the unity of the people. The Rangitūhaha was opened. Kupe's kōiwi are the mauri and maawe to hold the foundations of IO in place. 

                  All will be revealed