Power, politics, police: The Haumaha inquiry
Herald reporter Jared Savage, whose investigations with Phil Kitchin led to the government inquiry, looks back at the political saga and forward at what will happen next
Who is Wally Haumaha?
Wally Haumaha first joined the police in 1984 and replaced Viv Rickard, whose term was not renewed, as the Deputy Commissioner in June.
Haumaha, who hails from the Waitet¯ı Marae in Ngongotaha¯, served in Rotorua in the 1980s and 1990s until moving to Police National Headquarters in 2004.
In his role leading the Ma¯ori, Pacific & Ethnic Services, Haumaha has risen through the ranks from Inspector, Superintendent, Assistant Commissioner and now Deputy Commissioner.
He has a Queen’s Service Medal and is an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
In announcing the appointment to the statutory role, Police Minister Stuart Nash said Haumaha has the “clear vision and leadership skills” to deliver on the Government’s plan for the police.
“I expect him to play a key role to strengthen Ma¯ori leadership within police and enhance the relationship between police and Ma¯ori communities, in order to reduce both victimisation and offending.
“He is also superbly placed to work with other justice sector agencies to reduce the prison population.”
Why has the promotion been controversial?
Within a month of Haumaha’s appointment in June, the Herald reported comments made by Haumaha in 2004 to detectives investigating historical rape allegations against police officers.
Haumaha was close friends with Clint Rickards, Brad Shipton and Bob Schollum when they worked together at the Rotorua police station in the
1980s and 1990s.
He remained friends with them after they left the station and telephoned Rickards — who was by then the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Auckland — shortly after Louise Nicholas publicly alleged in 2004 the trio raped her in group sex sessions.
Her allegations — including being violated with a police baton — triggered an extensive police investigation, Operation Austin, and a Commission of Inquiry into the culture of the police and how sexual assault cases were investigated.
Detectives working on Operation Austin interviewed colleagues of the trio in January 2004.
Haumaha was a Senior Sergeant in Rotorua when interviewed about the culture of the station in the 1980s.
“The culture of the police back in the mid-80s was work hard and play hard,” he said in a statement to the Operation Austin investigation.
Haumaha described Schollum as a good friend, a dynamic leader and a “legend in his own right”.
“It was no secret that Bob was attractive to a lot of women . . . the legend was that he was never short of a girlfriend or female company.”
Haumaha also spoke highly of Rickards and Shipton, who was an “awesome cop”.
Shipton never mentioned anything about group sex, Louise Nicholas or a baton, Haumaha told Detective Sergeant John Price, now the Superintendent in charge of the Canterbury district.
“I feel that people got the wrong impression of Brad. He was a [softie].”
Haumaha told Price that he called Rickards as soon as the Nicholas allegations were published and his friend adamantly denied them.
And, according to the statement of another Rotorua police officer, Haumaha himself believed the allegations were “nonsense”.
Lynton “Knocker” Dean said he met with Haumaha in February
2004.
Haumaha, according to Dean’s statement, raised the Nicholas allegations and said “how much of a nonsense it was and how could anyone come out and drag it all up”.
“He also said something along the lines . . . nothing really happened and we have to stick together,” Dean told Detective Sergeant Grant Johnstone.
Dean told the Herald: “I stand by my statement 100 per cent”.
“Wally was mates with those guys, he put them on a pedestal.”
Rickards, Shipton and Schollum claimed the group sex with Nicholas was consensual and were found not guilty at the 2006 trial.
However, the jury was unaware Shipton and Schollum were already in prison on other rape charges laid by Operation Austin.
Nicholas was so angry to hear of Haumaha’s appointment that she demanded a meeting with him and Police Commissioner Mike Bush to voice her opposition.
“I didn’t hold back. I said ‘I’ve read your statement Wally and I know what you said. You put it out there about how wonderful these men were’,” said Nicholas.
In response to the Herald, Bush said Haumaha was a highly respected leader who “deeply regrets” the comments he made during Operation Austin.
Bush said Haumaha had no contact with his former colleagues who were charged in relation to Nicholas’ allegations since the investigation. Haumaha said: “I take responsibility for those comments, I deeply regret them, and I unreservedly apologise for the hurt and concern they have caused. That does not reflect my view or the values I bring to the job every day.”
Why is this a political issue?
The Deputy Commissioner of Police is a statutory appointment, made by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.
Haumaha’s name was given to Jacinda Ardern by Nash following a recruitment process run by the State Services Commission.
The problem was Nash was unaware of Haumaha’s comments, which he labelled “unacceptable and deeply disappointing”.
At the time, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters was the Acting Prime Minister. He announced an inquiry into the appointment process — but not the suitability of the candidate — to examine whether all relevant information was gathered by, or provided to, the SSC. State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes, deputy Debbie Power and Police Commissioner Mike Bush made up the panel which recommended Haumaha as one of two candidates to Nash.
Peters named Internal Affairs Minister Tracey Martin, a fellow NZ First MP, to appoint someone independent to run the inquiry.
This was attacked by the National Party as inappropriate when the Herald revealed Haumaha was once picked to be a candidate for New Zealand First in the 2005 election. This was never officially confirmed as Haumaha soon withdrew; his wife was charged with stealing $24,000 from her employer to replace the campaign funds she had gambled away.
Soon after Ardern returned from maternity leave, the Herald revealed more links between Haumaha and New Zealand First.
Peters was a guest speaker at a Waitet¯ı Marae function in 2017 to celebrate Haumaha’s promotion to Assistant Commissioner. He later took the step of making a personal statement to Parliament, stating the police invited Peters to the event.
Tommy Gear — Peters’ close friend and former NZ First staff member — is a senior leader at the marae of which Haumaha is the chair.
The pair are also trustees of the Ngati Ngararanui Hapu Trust. Gear’s nephew Fletcher Tabuteau, the deputy leader of New Zealand First, also comes from the marae and described Haumaha as whanau in his maiden speech to Parliament. “Any suggestion that New Zealand First Cabinet ministers are seeking to unduly influence this inquiry because of such community connections is baseless nonsense,” said Peters.
Ardern also downplayed any conflicts of interest.
But the saga will be a test of her leadership given the strong support for Haumaha inside Labour’s Maori caucus and lobbying by influential Ma¯ori leaders.
What is the inquiry about?
Three weeks passed from when the inquiry was announced to when its original chair, Dr Pauline Kingi, was named.
She resigned before she started after the Herald revealed Kingi had endorsed Haumaha on the professional networking site LinkedIn, as well as other roles she had advising police on Maori issues.
The PM admitted being “hugely frustrated” after a Herald report about three women working on a joint project walked out of Police National Headquarters in 2016 because of alleged bullying by Haumaha.
The policy analysts from Justice and Corrections refused to return but kept working on the project from the Justice offices.
Conflicting statements have been given about what happened next.
According to Justice, acting chief executive Audrey Sonerson raised “issues around behaviour” directly with Deputy Commissioner Mike Clement.
Sonerson went on to herself become a Deputy Commissioner of police, although just 18 months later she is on secondment to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Then just this week, Bush confirmed an employment investigation after a police officer — a potential witness to alleged bullying — told his manager that Haumaha contacted him.
Within a week of the PM being back at work, Mary Scholtens QC was named as the sole member of the inquiry. She was a key member of the 2004 Commission of Inquiry into Police Conduct.
Starting on Monday — and required to report back six weeks later in October — Scholtens will examine the appointment process.
The spotlight is likely to fall on Bush, whom Haumaha has reported to directly for the past four years.
Nicholas has said Deputy Commissioner Mike Clement — one of the senior officers on Operation Austin — approached her ahead of Haumaha’s promotion to Assistant Commissioner last year.
She said the police executive were well aware of her feelings.
“I said ‘this will come back to bite you on the arse’. And it has.”
Sources told the Herald that Clement — who graduated from Police College with Bush — did brief the Police Commissioner.
This was not denied by Bush. This leads to the prospect of all of the most senior leaders in the police — Bush, Haumaha, Clement and Sonerson — being interviewed under oath by the Queen’s Counsel. Even Haumaha’s predecessor, Viv Rickard, could be called to give evidence about what the Police Executive knew ahead of the promotion.
Not to mention the Prime Minister, Police Minister and State Services Commissioner Peter Hughes, one of the most powerful figures in Wellington. And what happens at the end of it all?
“If, at the conclusion of the inquiry, deficiencies are found in the appointment process, the Prime Minister will seek advice from the Solicitor General or the State Services Commissioner on the appropriate next steps.”