{"id":1193648,"date":"2016-07-06T14:24:38","date_gmt":"2016-07-07T00:24:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/?p=1193648"},"modified":"2016-07-28T17:22:48","modified_gmt":"2016-07-29T03:22:48","slug":"candidate-qa-office-of-hawaiian-affairs-at-large-kealii-makekau","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2016\/07\/candidate-qa-office-of-hawaiian-affairs-at-large-kealii-makekau\/","title":{"rendered":"Candidate Q&A: Office Of Hawaiian Affairs At-Large \u2014 Kealii Makekau"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note:<\/strong>\u00a0For Hawaii\u2019s Aug. 13 primary election, Civil Beat asked candidates to answer some questions.<\/em><\/p>\n

The following came from\u00a0Kealii Makekau<\/span><\/em>, a candidate for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee at-large position.<\/em> There are six other candidates, including\u00a0Daniel Anthony,\u00a0<\/span>Haunani Apoliona<\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Douglas Crum, <\/span>Leona Kalima,\u00a0<\/span>Paul Mossman and\u00a0<\/span>Kelii Akina<\/a>.<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

Go to Civil Beat\u2019s\u00a0Elections Guide<\/a>\u00a0for general information, and check out other candidates on the\u00a0Primary Election Ballot<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Kealii<\/a>
Kealii Makekau <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Name:<\/strong> Kealii Makekau<\/span><\/p>\n

Office seeking:<\/strong> Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee at large<\/span><\/p>\n

Occupation:\u00a0<\/strong>Accredited resident manager<\/span><\/p>\n

Community organizations:<\/strong> Order of Kamehameha 1; Elks Club #616<\/span><\/p>\n

Age as of Aug. 13, 2016:<\/strong> 45<\/span><\/p>\n

Place of residence:<\/strong> Honolulu<\/span><\/p>\n

1. This year has seen an outsized influence from people who want big\u00a0<\/span>changes in how government is run. What would you do to change how\u00a0<\/span>OHA is run?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

First a complete, independent fiscal forensic audit of all\u00a0<\/span>holdings and resources followed by a review of the Board of Trustees policy handbook\u00a0<\/span>and master plan by a committee of the whole. Lastly term limits for each\u00a0<\/span>seat implemented.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. Hawaii has long been dominated by the Democratic Party\u00a0<\/span>establishment. Should this change, and if so, how?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Yes. Hawaii\u2019s people\u00a0<\/span>need to stay in touch with government and who they vote to represent\u00a0<\/span>them. But people need to vote in order to do that.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Would you support eliminating Hawaii\u2019s high fees for access to public\u00a0<\/span>records when the request is in the public interest? <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

For public interest the\u00a0<\/span>fee should be reduced dramatically, say 80 percent for all peoples.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Voters complain their elected officials don\u2019t listen to them. What would\u00a0<\/span>you do to improve communication?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Again trustee term limits for starters,\u00a0<\/span>then a greater respect and obedience for the sunshine law and how it\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>administered. The more transparent you are the more informed are the\u00a0<\/span>people who will then be satisfied and up to date with ones actions.<\/span><\/p>\n

5. What do you see as the most pressing issue facing your district? What\u00a0<\/span>will you do about it?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Ending the Native Hawaiian governing entity\u00a0<\/span>process and all funded programs related to the nation building effort, which\u00a0<\/span>has since 2000 cost $33 million with no result.<\/span><\/p>\n

6. Is OHA fulfilling its mandate to serve the Hawaiian people?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

No! Since\u00a0<\/span>2000 the strategic plan has been centered on the formation of a\u00a0<\/span>government entity or tribe similar to Native Americans at a failed cost of\u00a0<\/span>$33 million plus. But sadly the majority of the Board of Trustees has let economic\u00a0<\/span>opportunities like a medical marijuana dispensary and the development of\u00a0<\/span>the Kakaako Makai properties<\/span> remain\u00a0<\/span>sidelined without a master plan either due to incompetence or instructions\u00a0<\/span>that the new tribal entity will have the first shot at that and more.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lastly the\u00a0<\/span>long\u2010term sustainability of Native Hawaiian assets that provide for all of OHA\u2019s\u00a0<\/span>efforts, like education, land management, fiscal resilience, economic\u00a0<\/span>sustainability and youth awareness must be managed and maintained properly,\u00a0<\/span>and as we have seen in the recent years that has not been the case as the trust\u00a0<\/span>is almost insolvent.<\/span><\/p>\n

7. What are your views regarding Hawaiian independence?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Due to\u00a0<\/span>admitted acts of insurgency, rebellion and the overthrow of the constitutional m<\/span>onarchy of the Kingdom of Hawaii, the de jure nation is under a continued\u00a0<\/span>impairment and is properly considered as an irregular state. It is, therefore, within\u00a0<\/span>the \u201cperfect right\u201d of the Hawaiian people to commence and complete\u00a0<\/span>sovereignty reinstatement procedures. The reinstatement process has never\u00a0<\/span>been brought up, examined or afforded resources via symposiums,\u00a0<\/span>academic debate and community dialogue. Until such time as that\u00a0<\/span>happens, justice and complete respect to the law and sprit of our ancestors\u00a0<\/span>will not be realized.<\/span><\/p>\n

8. Are you satisfied with the way OHA has negotiated with the state over\u00a0<\/span>ceded-land revenues?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Hell no! The ceded land settlement for Kakaako Makai\u00a0<\/span>property proved to be an undervalued and mishandled negotiation from the start.\u00a0<\/span>Not securing the submerged lands\u2019 water rights and inheriting the landfill\u00a0<\/span>contamination has hampered the overall best use and value of the entire site.\u00a0<\/span>Fortunately commercial zoning is already in place and with experienced\u00a0<\/span>management and remediation work, the potential for a small commercial city\u00a0<\/span>offering employment opportunities for businesses both local and mainland can be\u00a0<\/span>realized. This would show Kakaako\u2019s fullest potential and yield income for the\u00a0<\/span>trust, which funds all of OHA\u2019s programs.<\/span><\/p>\n

9. Why do you think Hawaiians are disproportionately represented in our\u00a0<\/span>prisons and jails? What can be done about it?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

For some Hawaiians the W<\/span>estern model of living doesn\u2019t work or relate to the value system needed\u00a0<\/span>to thrive in today\u2019s world. Hawaiian charter schools have shown amazing\u00a0<\/span>results, thus yielding a percentage of positive results all around. Funding for\u00a0<\/span>programs like this and traditional rehab for inmates will help to reduce the\u00a0<\/span>dismal numbers and restore a vibrant community and ohana.<\/span><\/p>\n

10. Do you support the construction of the TMT telescope atop Mauna\u00a0<\/span>Kea?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Until such time as the first and obsolete telescopes are\u00a0<\/span>decommissioned\/dismantled and the overall cost for building and using it\u00a0<\/span>are proposed and realized with an environmental impact statement along with cultural practices and\u00a0<\/span>access, no.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note:\u00a0For Hawaii\u2019s Aug. 13 primary election, Civil Beat asked candidates to answer some questions. The following came from\u00a0Kealii Makekau, a candidate for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee at-large position. There are six other candidates, including\u00a0Daniel Anthony,\u00a0Haunani Apoliona,\u00a0Douglas Crum, Leona Kalima,\u00a0Paul Mossman and\u00a0Kelii Akina. Go to Civil Beat\u2019s\u00a0Elections Guide\u00a0for general information, and check out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2000000,"featured_media":1193649,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37717,2792],"tags":[],"post_format":[],"project":[],"coauthors":[20],"class_list":["post-1193648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-elections-2016","category-politics"],"slp_mobile_featured_image":{"id":1193649,"href":"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1193649","image_path":"https:\/\/d1l18ops95qbzp.cloudfront.net\/wp-content\/2016\/07\/Screen-Shot-2016-07-06-at-1.25.12-PM.png","caption":"Kealii Makekau"},"acf":[],"slp_coauthors":[{"display_name":"Civil Beat","user_nicename":"civilbeat","author_link":"https:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/author\/civilbeat\/"}],"slp_acf":{"cb_excerpt_type":"hidden","cb_article_type":"","cb_related_logo_image":false,"cb_related_logo_link":"","cb_related_sponsor_logo_image":false,"cb_related_sponsor_url":"","cb_related_sponsor_text":"","cb_article_footnotes":"","dynamic_html":"","cb_author_contributor_type":"internal","cb_article_sidebar":"","shins":false},"slp_primary_category":{"id":2792,"name":"Politics"},"apple_news_notices":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Candidate Q&A: Office Of Hawaiian Affairs At-Large \u2014 Kealii Makekau","url":"http:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2016\/07\/candidate-qa-office-of-hawaiian-affairs-at-large-kealii-makekau\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.civilbeat.org\/2016\/07\/candidate-qa-office-of-hawaiian-affairs-at-large-kealii-makekau\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/d1l18ops95qbzp.cloudfront.net\/wp-content\/2016\/07\/Screen-Shot-2016-07-06-at-1.25.12-PM-150x150.png","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/d1l18ops95qbzp.cloudfront.net\/wp-content\/2016\/07\/Screen-Shot-2016-07-06-at-1.25.12-PM.png"},"articleSection":"Elections 2016","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Civil Beat"}],"creator":["Civil Beat"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"天美视频","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2016-07-07T00:24:38Z","datePublished":"2016-07-07T00:24:38Z","dateModified":"2016-07-29T03:22:48Z"},"rendered":"