Kua piki te taumahatanga o te taukumekume e pā ana ki te maunga o Mauao, whai muri i ngā horonga whenua hou, me ngā reo whakatūpato mai i te Kaunihera o Tauranga, te Tarahiti o Mauao me ngā mana whenua kia kaua e hohoro te whakatuwhera i te maunga ki te marea.
Ahakoa te pēhanga mai o te Mema Pāremata mō Tauranga, a Simon Uffindell, kia whakahokia te uru atu o te iwi ki te tihi o te maunga, he ukiuki te tū a ngā māngai o te iwi me te Tarahiti o Mauao. E ono ngā horo whenua hou kua kitea, ā, e noho kati tonu ana a Adams Avenue hei tiaki i te haumarutanga o te marea.
E ai ki a Charlie Rahiri, te Kaiwhakahaere Whakaoranga o Mauao mō te Kaunihera o Tauranga, me aro nui te hapori ki te hauora o te maunga i mua i te whakaaro ki te hoki atu.
“Ko te Maunga te kōrero whakamutunga. Ko te taiao te kōrero whakamutunga. Koirā te kōrero o te mana whenua, otirā ngā iwi katoa o Tauranga Moana kei roto i ngā āhuatanga o te mamae me ngā pouritanga ki runga i a Mauao, me taihoa!” hei tā Rahiri.
“Ahakoa taukumekume, Ahakoa ētahi wā kāre tētahi taha e whakaae ki tētahi taha kua kōrero. Ka kōrero tātou e pā ana ki tō tātou nei Maunga,” hei tāna anō.
Ko te whakaaro o te mana whenua, ehara te tangata i te rangatira i runga i te taiao, engari he hononga tahi tō rāua. E kī ana a Joel Ngātuere o tētahi o ngā hapū manawhenua, me whai whakaaro te katoa ki tēnei hononga tapu.
“Kia mōhio ana tātou a te iwi Māori – ka haere tahi te tangata me te taiao. Ehara te tangata kei runga i te taiao,” te kī a Joel. “Ko te mana o te hapū, ko mana o te iwi, ko te mana o te marae e kōrero ana mōna ake mana. Ehara i te tauiwi,” hei tāna anō.
Kei te tautoko hoki a Peter Stokes o te marae o Whareroa i te tū o te Kaunihera me te Tarahiti, e whakahau ana kia tūpato te katoa, i te mea e tohu ana a Koro Mauao i ngā raru e haere ake nei.
“Kia tūpato i roto i tō tātou nei moana i runga i tō tātou nei whenua. Ngā raruraru kei te haere,” hei tā Peter. “Hoki atu ki tērā kōrero – e māuiui ana te taiao, e māuiui ana te tangata,” hei tāna anō.
I tēnei wā, ka noho tonu ngā aukati ki Adams Avenue i a rātou e āta aromatawai ana i te maunga. Ko te karere matua mai i te mana whenua ki te iwi whānui, he mea nui ake te haumarutanga i ngā hiahia tōrangapū, kia kore ai he aituā anō e pā ki te tangata i runga i te maunga e whakamamae tonu ana.