BENEFIT TO MAORI PEOPLE

Te Ao Hou, July 1956, Page 49

BENEFIT TO MAORI PEOPLE From the income which the Maori Trustee receives in respect of the interests acquired by him, he recovers the amount laid out from his Conversion Fund as purchase money, plus one-quarter of the amount so laid out. As he will be receiving his money back over a fairly long period, he is entitled to something by way of interest on his investment—hence the recovery of a sum equal to a quarter of the purchase price. When the Maori Trustee has recouped the Conversion Fund, the income from the purchased interests is to be applied for purposes of general benefit to the Maoris, the machinery of section 30 of the Maori Trustee Act, 1953, relating to the disposition of unclaimed moneys being invoked for the purpose. The way this works briefly is that representative committees set up in each district draw from time to time a scheme for the disposal of unclaimed moneys in the district, which after approval, enables the money to be paid out to Maori organisations in the district, or for specific Maori purposes such as aiding education, marae improvements, social centres and the like. In this way the ultimate position will be that the income from these lands will be a fund distributed for Maori causes each year. Leases of the Maori Reserves or Township Lands having been granted at different times and under different statutory provisions there are many variations in them, particularly as to the method of assessing rent on renewals. The Act prescribes two standard forms of lease, one for farm land and one for land in towns or cities. Lessees may be given an offer to surrender their existing leases and take a lease in the appropriate standard form. Similarly when a lease falls due for renewal the same offer may be made. It is open to the lessee to accept or decline this offer at his discretion since he may prefer to retain his rights under the existing lease. The standard form of lease prescribed, provides for assessment of rent on the basis of government valuation.