OFFICE OF HAWAIIAN AFFAIRS GIVE HAWAIIANS THE SHAFT ONCE AGAIN !
Honolulu Star-Bulletin - January 27 - By Mary Vorsino
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs would get $15.1 million a year in ceded-lands revenues and $17.5 million in back payments under a tentative settlement announced yesterday, which some say falls well short of what the agency should be entitled to under a 1980 state law.
"It appears that the trustees have settled for crumbs at the table of the king," said state Sen. Clayton Hee, a former OHA trustee and chairman. "This amount represents an entitlement lower than what the legislation called for, particularly in times when the economy is robust. From a dollars perspective, this is not a good settlement from the Hawaiian point of view...."
Last night, OHA trustee Rowena Akana said the full board was not consulted before the deal was made public -- even though OHA sent out a news release with the Governor's Office on the settlement yesterday afternoon.
"The board of trustees was not privy to this deal," Akana said. "It is just egregious. It appears to be a done deal...."
Akana said the deal's $17.5 million payoff for back payments is far too small.
