I roto i ngā tau tata nei, kua tino whakaputa au i aku whakaaro mō ngā rangahau e pā ana ki te tāmate haere o te reo Māori mai i ngā tau whitu tekau o tērā rau tau, taka mai ki ēnei rā. Ā tēnā, e whai ake nei tētahi o aku tino kōrero i puta ki te motu. I hē taku whakamāori i ngā tatauranga o Te Puni Kōkiri engari i hiahia noa iho au ki te whakamataara, ki te whakaohoho i te iwi ki te āhua o te noho mōrearea o te reo Māori i ēnei rā. Ā tēnā, kia tirohia ake aku kōrero:

“Ko te tino hoariri o te whakaora ake i te reo Māori, ko te pōhēhē e ora ana te reo. Nā te mea kua kaha ake te kōrerohia o te reo Māori i te pouaka whakaata, i ngā reo irirangi me ngā kura, e whakaarotia ana kei te ora te reo Māori. Kātahi nei te pōhēhē ko tēnei. E ai ki ngā tatauranga a Te Tari Tatau o te tau 2006, ka taea e tētahi 23% o te hunga pakeke te kōrero mō ngā momo āhuatanga o ia rā, ki te reo Māori. Ki te hurihia ēnei tatauranga hei tau, kei tōna 131,600 nei te hunga kōrero Māori. E ai ki ngā rangahautanga i puta i te Health of the Māori Language i te tau 2006, 14% noa iho o ēnei tāngata he matatau ki te reo. Ko te tikanga o tērā kōrero, o ngā tāngata Māori e 565,000 katoa, 18,000 noa iho he matatau ki te reo. Whakamataku ana ēnei tatauranga. Me pēhea atu hoki he kōrero atu i te kī, kei te tino raruraru tonu tō tātou reo.”

Nā reira, anei taku whakapāha ki aku hoa mahi o Te Puni Kōkiri, ko te 14% e kōrerohia ake nei he 14% o ngā pakeke kua 15 neke atu ngā tau. Ki te tātari anō au i ngā nama, ka noho ko te hunga matatau ki te reo ki te takiwā o te 33,000 nei, kaua ki te 18,000. Mō taku hē, mō taku hē!

Engari anō rā, ahakoa 18,000 mai, 33,000 mai rānei, he tokoiti tonu taua hunga.

Kia mahara tonu tātou e pīkauria ana te reo e tēnei ranga, ka mutu, he pīkaunga taumaha tēnei hei pīkau mā te tokoiti.

Heoi, anei anō ētahi atu kai mā te hinengaro.

E kī ana ngā rangahau he whārua whānui kei te wehe i ngā kaikōrero Māori:

Te hunga whai pito mata ki te kōrero: E tohu ana ngā rangahau ka tere mau i te tangata te taha whakarongo me te taha pānui, tēnā i te kōrero me te tuhituhi. He tohu pea tēnei inā noa atu te tokomaha kua tīmata te whai i te reo, kua āhua mōhio rānei ki te reo, engari e noho torohū ana te taha kōrero. Te korekore o te hunga matatau: Kua tino heke te tokomaha o te hunga matatau ki te kōrero mai i ngā tau whitu tekau o tērā rau tau. E ai ki te rangahau a te New Zealand Council of Educational Research (NZCER), e whitu tekau mano ngā kaikōrero pēnei e ora tonu ana, i ēnei rā, kei tōna toru tekau mā toru mano noa iho.

He tokoiti rawa te hunga Māori e tahuri ana ki te reo, ahakoa te nui o ngā huarahi ako i te reo e puare ana ki a rātou. Tērā tonu ko te hunga ka tahuri ake ki te reo, kei te whai i tētahi o tōna whānau, ā, ka noho te whānau hei kaitautoko mō rātou mō te roanga ake o tā rātou whai i te reo. Ko te hunga e ū pūmau ana ki te reo, he kaha ki te kuhu i a rātou anō, he manawa nui, he manawa roa ki te reo. Ko te whakapono mā te reo rawa rātou e kīia ai he Māori kei te whakakaha i a rātou. Ko te kore e whai tāima, ko te warea ki kaupapa kē me te kore e kite i te uara o te reo ētahi take e kore nei ētahi e tahuri ake ki te ako i te reo.

Ko te whakatara nui kei mua i te aroaro o Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, ko ngā mahi whakamōhio atu i te marea i ngā piki me ngā heke e taea ai a Māori mā te whai auroa i te reo, me te whakatairanga whānui i a ia kia mōhio pū ai te tangata ki tōna uara.

Koia ēnei, ko ngā kōrero e hiahiatia ana kia whakairia ake ki te pātū o tō tātou whare i tēnei wā. Ka waiho mā koutou ēnei whakaaro ōku, e wānanga, e mōtatau tonu. Kia hoki atu koutou ki ō koutou kāinga, he wā pea tōna e tino mārama ai tētahi huarahi hei whakahihiri i te iwi Māori katoa ki tōna reo. Nō reira kei aku amokapua, kei aku amorangi, i tēnei wiki reo Māori, nau mai, haere atu i runga i te mōhio kua kōrerotia te reo, kua manaakitia te reo, kua arohatia te reo, me te haere tahi anō o te harikoa, o te manamanahau, me te hiamo.