Ma¯ori charity faces $100k bill over ‘torrid’ battle

AMa¯ori welfare charity faces a six-figure legal bill over a bitter fight in which members are seeking to oust the group’s president.

Prue Kapua claims she is the target of ‘‘torrid’’ personal attacks against her leadership of the Ma¯ori Women’s Welfare League, and said the court action was arrogant and self-indulgent.

Meanwhile, her opponents say she has created a culture of fear at the organisation.

Kapua acknowledged the High Court bill could run to $100,000 – a cost that would be shouldered by the league – but said the challenge made her ‘‘more determined to just continue on’’. ¯ anOPaulineRewiti, tara social worker and league member who launched the case, said she believed Kapua was an illegitimate president.

‘‘I will not withdraw this case until Prue Kapua steps down, says sorry to the league, and we have a new election,’’ Rewiti said.

The case centres around whether Kapua, the wife of Labour MPLouisa Wall, was eligible to stand last year for a second term as president.

It has its roots in a similar debacle from 2011, when Destiny Church co-founder Hannah Tamaki controversially ran for president.

In that case, the High Court ruled Tamaki had stacked the league with extra branches.

Following Tamaki’s failed takeover bid the league launched a review of its constitution.

Kapua was one of six members of the constitutional review panel, and legal proceedings allege that in 2013 she removed a clause from the constitution limiting presidents to one three- year term.

She successfully ran for president the following year, and was re-elected in 2017.

Rewiti said many league members were unaware the term limit had been removed from the constitution until it was too late.

‘‘The process wasn’t done right, and we weren’t notified,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s a disrespect of the tikanga.’’

Kapua rejected that allegation and said the changes to the constitution had gone through a ‘‘pretty robust process’’.

She claimed Rewiti was acting with the support of Materoa Dodd, her opponent in the 2017 presidential race.

‘‘Materoa and her partner Ripeka Evans staged a campaign against me not standing,’’ Kapua said, adding it was disappointing Reweti had decided to put her name to the case.

Rewiti said she was insulted