Tuku Morgan

Waikato-Tainui leader Tuku Morgan tells Guyon why he's so fired about the backlash against te reo, how young Māori have the power to change the future and why he's not sorry about that underwear scandal.

Watch the video version of the episode here.

Tukoroirangi Morgan helped establish Māori Television, has been the spokesman for the Māori King, and was once described as the most reviled politician in New Zealand.

He grew up in poverty, in a home where te reo Māori was the first language and has spent his life fighting for that language, as a journalist, a politician, a member of the Kiingitanga, and - currently - as chair of Waikato Tainui.

Now, he says that Māori face an existential battle against the government for their rights, their culture, and their language.

Guyon Espiner asks Tuku about whether he stands by his recent claim: that the government have rendered Māori an almost nullity.

"Absolutely. There are achievements that have been won as a result of courage and determination by our forebears."

"Leaders before my time were able to fashion a pathway so that people like me and my grandchildren could enjoy Te Reo Māori, and have the opportunity to do things for ourselves, both socially and environmentally."

"As the chair of Waikato-Tainui, I have a responsibility to make sure that those things that were entrenched in our treaty settlement are promoted and upheld by this government - including the preservation of our Reo, and the notion of holistic wellbeing for all my people."

Te Reo seems to be thriving in New Zealand society today. More people are speaking it, learning it, non-speakers understand more of it. Will government policy really have a negative effect on that?

"It’s the public narrative that they promote - this notion that our language is irrelevant and inappropriate in modern society. I think the undeniable responsibility of the crown is to be a good partner. And that partnership was enshrined in the Treaty of Waitangi. We should be working together not against each other."

"Modern New Zealand society has embraced Te Reo Māori [but] what we have is a whole bunch of ageing white males who continue to perpetuate this notion that Te Reo Māori is a sidebar."

"Even [former political ally Winston Peters] is a problem. There is only one place where this language belongs, and it's here in this country. We can't go anywhere else. Our existence, our uniqueness as a people, hinges around our Reo, our culture."…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details