He oranga reo, he oranga tangata
Nau mai, haere atu ēnei kupu i runga i te hau o te whakaaronui ki ō tātau mate huhua o ngā tau ka hori nei, otirā rātau te hunga kōrero Māori i te wā e takatū haere ana i ngā pā kāinga o ngā momo kaupapa whakamahi i te reo Māori. E tangihia tonutia ana ko ngā wahakī, ko ngā kaihautū o ā tātau kaupapa nui me ō rātau nā momo reo; ko ōku anō i taku tamarikitanga; arā, ko Moni Taumaunu, ko Joe Tuhiwai, ko Tīpene Ngata me tōna tuahine a Mate Kaiwai, ko Tame Te Maro, ko Tuahine Hauraki, ko Apirana Mahuika, ko Te Kapunga Dewes; ā, ko Wiremu Parker, ko Ruka Broughton, ko Murumāra o nā tata nei. Inā anō ngā reo o Te Taura Whiri kua ngū; te reo whakatika o Miria Simpson, te reo pao o Anita Moke, te karakia a Matutaera Ihaka, te ngāwari o Erima Hēnare, ko te momo tonu o te tangata kua riro, haere, whakangaro atu.
Kia tīkina atu ngā kupu a Ngoingoi e mea ana, ‘Ka noho au i konei ka whakaaro noa. Me pēhea rā te huri a te ao katoa…’ hei wāhi ake i tēnei kōrero āku. Nā te aha ahau i tō mai ki tēnei takiwā tonu nei? He uri mātau ko aku tuākana, tuāhine hoki nō Ngā Tamatoa i kīia ai ‘He toto heke, he tīpare here ki te ūkaipō’ arā, nō ngā mōrehu o te rua tekau mā waru i hoki ora mai i te pakanga tuarua o te ao me ngā āhuatanga ka mau i a rātau me ō rātau whānau tae noa mai ki tēnei wā. I tipu mātau i roto i te mahi; mahi kai, mahi pāmu, mahi aha rā hei oranga mō mātau. I tipu anō i roto i te ao i aro nui ō mātau mātua ki te whai i te huarahi mātauranga Pākehā, nā ko te reo Pākehā te reo matua o tō mātau kāinga, hāunga anō tō rāua reo ki a rāua. Nā te aha rā i paepae aku taringa ki ngā waha kōrero Māori o taua wā, ngā pakeke, he hiahia nōku ki te whai i tērā reo ōku. Heoi ka nui ngā mihi ki tōku tino kaiako reo, ki a Hoani Waititi me ana kaiāwhina e toru, ko Rangatahi 1, 2 me 3. Nā rātau ahau i ako ki te reo Māori, tae atu hoki ki Te Reo Rangatira o T.S. Karetu!
Nā reira ko ōku katoa i ngā tau whā tekau ka taha nei ko te ako, ko te whakaako, ko te wānanga, ko te haka, ko te whakarite, ko te rautaki, ko te kōrero i tō tātau reo Māori. Me te aha, ka mau ki roto i Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori hei kaiako kura reo, hei kaiwhiri, hei tumuaki, hei kairangahau, hei Toihau i tēnei wā, e heke ana. Kua ora ahau i tēnei mea te reo Māori, kua paku ora hoki te reo Māori i ahau, koinā te hāngai haere ake nei. He whakatipuranga anō kei te hanake; tukua, tautokona, whakamihia, kia mauriora tō tātau reo!