A Bold Challenge to Te Pāti Māori: Expelled MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi Moves to Halt Actions Against Party Leader
Mariameno Kapa-Kingi, who was removed from Te Pāti Māori, has taken legal action to seek an interim injunction against the party’s president, John Tamihere. Court records show she filed the request, and an urgent hearing is scheduled for tomorrow morning in the High Court in Wellington.
Kapa-Kingi had previously signaled her intention to pursue court action to contest her expulsion from the party. She held a public meeting in Te Tai Tokerau last week, an event organized by Ngāpuhi leaders. Notably, Te Pāti Māori’s leadership did not attend the hui, despite being invited to participate.
The impending hearing comes just days before the party’s annual general meeting is due to take place in Rotorua. At the AGM, the council intends to decide whether to formalize the expulsions of Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and fellow MP Takuta Ferris.
The internal clash within the party has spanned several weeks, culminating in the expulsions of Kapa-Kingi and Ferris, the resignation calls for Te Pāti Māori’s president, and efforts by iwi leaders to intervene.
Publicly, the controversy began to surface when Eru Kapa-Kingi, Mariameno’s son and a leader of the group Toitu Te Tiriti, described the party as having a toxic, “dictatorship”-style leadership and emphasized that his faction operates independently from Te Pāti Māori.
When asked about her son’s statements, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi responded that change is needed and beneficial, saying, “Change is good for us. I think, particularly now.”
Attempts to obtain a response from Te Pāti Māori and from Kapa-Kingi regarding the situation have so far been unsuccessful, with 1News reporting that neither side has provided comment.
