Āpirana Ngata

Ngata c. 1905

Ngata quickly distinguished himself in Parliament as a skilled orator. He worked closely with his friend Carroll, and also worked closely with Robert Stout. Ngata and Stout, members of the Native Land Commission, were often critical of the government's policies towards Māori, particularly those designed at encouraging the sale of Māori land. In 1909, Ngata assisted John Salmond in the drafting of the Native Land Act.

In late 1909, Ngata was appointed to Cabinet, holding a minor ministerial responsibility for Māori land councils. He retained this position until 1912, when the Liberal government was defeated. Ngata followed the Liberals into Opposition.

In the First World War, Ngata was highly active in gathering Māori recruits for military service, working closely with Reform Party MP, Maui Pomare. Ngata's own Ngāti Porou were particularly well represented among the volunteers. The Māori commitment to the war by some iwi, can be attributed to Ngata and Pomare and this created a certain amount of goodwill from Pākehā towards iwi who had loyally supported the country; this assisted Ngata's later attempts to resolve land grievances.

Although in Opposition, Ngata enjoyed relatively good relations with his counterparts across the House in the Reform Party. He had a particularly good relationship with Gordon Coates, who became Prime Minister in 1925 and later Princess Te Puea of Waikato. The establishment of several government bodies, such as the Māori Purposes Fund Control Board and the Board of Māori Ethnological Research, owed much to Ngata's involvement.

Ngata and Te Rangi Hīroa alongside a tukutuku panel at Ngata's home, during an expedition by Elsdon Best, James Ingram McDonald and Johannes Andersen.

Ngata was also active in a huge variety of other endeavours. The most notable, perhaps, was his involvement in academic and literary circles – in this period, he published a number of works on significant Māori culture, with Nga moteatea, a collection of Māori songs, being one of his better known works. Ngata was also heavily involved in the protection and advancement of Māori culture among Māori themselves, giving particular attention to promoting the haka, poi dancing, and traditional carving that had been begun by Te Puea.

In 1926 Ngata spearheaded government legislation which established the School of Māori Arts that later became the New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute. The school was to preserve Māori arts and crafts amongst fears the skills and knowledge would be lost forever.[6] One aspect of his advocacy of Māori culture was the construction of many new traditional meeting houses throughout the country.

Yet another of Ngata's interests was the promotion of Māori sport, which he fostered by encouraging intertribal competitions and tournaments. Finally, Ngata also promoted Māori issues within the Anglican Church in New Zealand, encouraging the creation of a Māori bishopric. In December 1928, Frederick Bennett, was consecrated as suffragan bishop to the Waiapu diocese with the title Bishop of Aotearoa.[7] Ngata and Bishop Herbert Williams campaigned for the recognition of Māori language as a subject for study in the University of New Zealand, with the study of Māori becoming eligible for a degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1928.[7]

Throughout all this, Ngata also remained deeply involved in the affairs of his Ngāti Porou iwi, particularly as regards land development. He was instrumental in establishing the land incorporation scheme whereby unused Māori land with multiple owners was amalgamated under a farm manager—often Pākehā, who developed and ran the farm. In government he was able to arrange for the transfer of four blocks of farm land to Te Puea Herangi and her husband. He arranged grants and government loans to help her develop farms for Waikato. He fired the Pākehā farm manager and replaced him with Te Puea. He arranged a car for her so she could travel around her estates. In 1934, during the depression, the public, media and parliament became alarmed at the large sums of money being gifted to Te Puea and others. A royal commission was held and Ngata was found guilty of irregularities in expenditure and negligence in administration, but no major scandals were unearthed. His land projects up to 1934 had involved the expenditure of £500,000, most of which was recoverable. Ngata resigned in December 1934.[8] Ngata fought for higher living standards for the Māori people, and was very active during an economic depression in New Zealand in the Thirties, developing large farms which provided jobs and helped to restore the dignity of many Māori.[9]

Ngata was knighted as a Knight Bachelor in the 1927 King's Birthday Honours,[10] only the third Māori (after Carroll and Pomare) to receive this honour.

Coalition Cabinet of 1931. Ngata is seated on the front row, second from right.

All 52 Members of the Liberal Party of the 17th parliament

Te Rīringi, Ngata's second wife

In the 1928 election, the United Party (a rebranding of the old Liberal Party, to which Ngata belonged) won an unexpected victory. Ngata was returned to Cabinet, becoming Minister of Native Affairs. He was ranked third within Cabinet, and occasionally served as acting Deputy Prime Minister. Ngata remained extremely diligent in his work, and was noted for his tirelessness. Much of his ministerial work related to land reforms, and the encouragement of Māori land development. Ngata continued to believe in the need to rejuvenate Māori society, and worked strongly towards this goal.

In 1929, Ngata's wife Arihia Ngata and his eldest son Mākarini died of dysentery.[11] After Arihia's death, Ngata married Te Rīringi Tūhou in 1932.[1][12]

In 1932 Ngata and his Department of Native Affairs came under increasing criticism from other politicians. Many believed that Ngata was pressing ahead too fast, and the large amount of activity that Ngata ordered had caused organizational difficulties within the department. An inquiry into Ngata's department was held, and it was discovered that one of Ngata's subordinates had falsified accounts. Ngata himself was severely criticised for disregarding official regulations which he had often felt were inhibiting progress. It was also alleged that Ngata had shown favouritism to Ngāti Porou and Waikato, especially Te Puea and her husband Rawiri Tumokai Katipa. Bob Semple, a leading Labour politician, said the Royal Commission investigation showed one of the worst specimens of abuse of political power, maladministration, misappropriation of public funds as well as a betrayal of trust. Ngata, while denying any personal wrongdoing, accepted responsibility for the actions of his department and was dismissed from his ministerial position.

Māori leaders, such as Te Puea, were angry at Ngata for discrediting and embarrassing Māori.[13]