Buck Shelford ... among the role models. Photo: LBF/Scoop

Pacific.Scoop
By Lucy Mullinger

After all those years of yelling out “bring back Buck, bring back Buck”, he’s finally coming back.

Former All Black skipper Buck Shelford will be discussing New Zealand sport with other Māori sports stars including surfing champion Daniel Kireopa and Oceania football player of the century, Wynton Rufer, at the 2009 Māori Expo tomorrow.

AUT University Chancellor Sir Paul Reeves told Pacific.Scoop only 10 percent of students enrolling at AUT University are of Māori descent – but he said this was far better than most universities.

AUT also has almost as many Pacific Islands students.

The expo aims at enthusing more young Polynesian people to learn and gain “professional careers on a local and international level”, said Sir Paul.

If sport isn’t your thing, the Māori Expo has so much more to offer everyone.  A political debate will be held by Willy Jackson, featuring leaders such as Associate Māori Affairs Minister Dr Pita Sharples (Māori Party), Pacific Affairs Minister Georgina Te Heu Heu,  Labour’s Māori affairs spokesperson Parekura Horomia and Metiria Turei of the Green Party.

Sir Paul said this was an opportune time for Māori people to get a chance to discuss politics due to the big issue in Auckland at the moment – the future of Māori seats on the Auckland “Super City” Council.

According to Sir Paul, this event is held for all Māori and Pacific Islanders, especially young people who are not sure of what they want to do in the future.

In its 14th year, Sir Paul predicts there will be about 30,000 people attending the event throughout the day and night – it opens tonight.

Kapa haka teams from Rutherford High School, Auckland Girls Grammar, Nga Puna Waiorea and Piripono will be competing for the David Mackey Memorial Trophy, named after a highly regarded kaumatua from AUT.

This year competitors at the Ngā Manu Kōrero speech competition will be speaking at the event.  Students from Western Springs College and Epsom Girls will be taking part – two will be delivering their speech in Te Reo and two will be speaking in English.

AUT Māori liaison Colleen Leauanae says the speech competitions and kapa haka events “instil a sense of pride and confidence” for both the schools and the students.

AUT event manager Renata Blair is in his third year of organising the event and he says the expo is one of the largest events on the Māori calendar.

Blair said the Māori Expo came about with a general need to give Māori people the chance to celebrate all aspects of Māori sport, culture, arts and education.

The expo “brings a wide range of iwi, hapu, whanau as well as community, business, education, not-for-profit and government agencies from kohanga reo to kaumatua age groups together to celebrate being Māori”, said Blair.

The Māori Expo has undergone several changes since the last event in 2007: it has moved to New Zealand’s premier venue and to the delight of those younger people who will be attending the event, this evening concert is called “Groove the Night”.

Vector Arena chief executive Guy Ngata said this was the first free Māori community event the venue had hosted.

“It’s great that AUT is able to give people the opportunity to experience Māori entertainment, music, and showcase the great Māori talent we have in this country,” Ngata said.

Groove the Night, which kicks off after the expo, will feature the biggest local music line up Vector Arena has seen, with performances from six of New Zealand music’s best and brightest.

Che Fu will take to the stage alongside Tahuna Breaks, Three Houses Down, House of Shem, Cornerstone Roots and the Herbs.

Māori Expo’s free daytime event “Seize the day” will be held at the Vector arena from 9am till 3pm.

For those who want to get down and boogie, “Groove the night” will be open from 7pm till midnight where Aotearoa artists ranging from Che Fu to House of Shem will be performing.

Lucy Mullinger is a Graduate Diploma in Journalism student at AUT University.