Māori and political leaders have acknowledged Kīngi Tūheitia’s successor – his daughter Nga Wai hono i to pō.

Just hours before her father Kīngi Tūheitia was to be taken to his final resting place on the sacred Tauranga Mountain, the Kīngitanga announced Ngā Wai as the new leader of the Waikato-Tainui movement.

Lady Tureiti Moxon said Ngā Wai had been groomed to take over from her father and is steeped in the history of the Kīngitanga and the important role it plays in Māoridom.

“She is the right person for the job, to take the mantle of Kīngitanga, and I’m sure she will have the support and love of the people to carry her through,” Moxon said.

Lady Tureiti Moxon.

“Given all the responsibilities and obligations she will have not just to the people of Tainui, but to the whole country. As Kīngi Tūheitia was very influential in the Pacific and internationally, like his relationship with King Charles and other dignitaries around the world. I believe that she has been groomed to take over.”

“She worked for us here at Te Kōhao Health for a while, looking after our taonga shop. She lived on the marae for a while. She’s represented her father on a number of occasions all over the motu and at Kirikiriroa Marae.

“Remember that Te Makau Ariki Te Atawhai is our patron at Te Kōhao Health and her father was the patron of Kirikiriroa Marae and that relationship has always been very strong, as it was with Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, and we hope it will continue to be strong with the new monarch.”

Shane Jones at Kīngi Tūheitia's tangi.

NZ First MP Shane Jones, who yesterday spoke at the tangi of Kīngi Tūheitia on behalf of the Government, said Ngā Wai’s appointment was a massive shift for the Kīngitanga.

“This is more than a generational shift,” Jones said. “She will be the face of renewal.

“Given the extent of Māori youth, I suspect she will personify their aspirations.”

Labour MP Willie Jackson was among the mourners at the tangi for Kīngi Tūheitia. Photo / Mike Scott.

Act leader David Seymour, who attended the tangi yesterday, also congratulated the new Māori Queen.

“On behalf of the Act Party, I congratulate Queen Ngā Wai hono i te pō on her appointment as the head of the Kīngitanga movement. I wish them all the best in carrying on the legacy of Kīngi Tūheitia Pōtatau Te Wherowhero VII.”

NZ First leader Winston Peters and Act Leader David Seymour enter the marae grounds for the tangi of Kīngi Tūheitia. Photo / Mike Scott.

Labour MP Willie Jackson said Ngā Wai was a great choice.

“Her selection is no surprise, she was the obvious choice,” Jackson said.

“Unlike her father she has been prepared and would have prepared herself for the role she was brought up around her grandmother, Dame Te Atairangikaahu, a magnificent Queen and father who became a great leader for Māori.

“She represents the new generation, fluent in te reo Māori, passionate about kapa haka and even more passionate for her people. She may be more political than her father.

“In 2022 on a trip to see King Charles, she said: ‘I have to be honest, I would like all Māori land to be returned to our people.’

“She might have to hold her views back, though, just for a little while as Māori adjust to the leadership change. However, maybe Kīngitanga has just unveiled one of the most promising and potentially dynamic Māori leaders that Māoridom has seen. Time will tell.”

Whānau Ora chair Merepeka-Raukawa Tait and Te Pāti Māori MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke. Photo / Sarah Sparks.

Whānau Ora chair Merepeka Raukawa-Tait said Ngā Wai was a great choice.

“We are living in significant challenging times in Aotearoa,” Raukawa-Tait said.

“Tūheitia’s daughter has the skills and sensitivity to lead the Kīngitanga.

“She knows what the job will demand of her and I believe she will bring the kotahitanga focus her father championed. Hers is the leadership Aotearoa requires now. Leadership of vision, communicated with passion, for the benefit of Maori and all New Zealanders. Long live Ariki Ngā Wai hono i te pō.”

Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere said Ngā Wai was born to the new generation brought up in the digital age.

“She has a different set of skills from that of her father Kīngi Tūheitia and her grandmother, who was Queen for 40 years,” Tamihere said.

“Like her grandmother Dame Te Atairangikaahu, she too has jumped males that were ahead of her and she went on to become a magnificent queen.

“But this kid is right on the button and could have a long reign ahead. She is of the Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke era.

“The Kīngitanga movement is on the move.”