Allegations of defamation led to an apology by Mike Hosking to John Tamihere.
This morning Michael Noel James Hosking IV delivered an apology to Māori Party co-leader John Tamihere over defamatory comments made by Hosking in 2018.
The comments relate to a $600,000 private shareholder payment from Whānau Ora contractor, Te Pou Matakana, to its major shareholder, the National Urban Māori Authority. Tamihere is the CEO of NUMA foundation member, Te Whānau O Waipareira.
While the Mike’s Minute in question has been removed from the internet, it’s likely Hosking alleged Tamihere had lined his own pockets. In a separate post the same week Hosking defended what he’d said.
“I was talking about a surplus payment that was made to the National Urban Māori Authority, and not to Tamihere personally. My point was whether the money would have been better put back into the next round of funding from the Ministry for Social Development for other work,” he wrote/spake (The Spinoff is not entirely sure how Hosking posts work. Are they written then said, or said then written? Or written then said then written?)
Hosking and Newstalk ZB parent company NZME initially denied Tamihere’s claims and a hearing was set for October last year, but NZME withdrew their application in August. A judge then ruled NZME would pay costs to Tamihere to the tune of $1,544. A public apology on air and in the courts was agreed to as part of the settlement between the two parties.
Hosking is on holiday at the moment, so the apology to John “Tammy-herry” was prerecorded and broadcast on Newstalk ZB Breakfast at 7.24am. A statement using the same wording is also on the ZB and NZ Herald websites.
“Newstalk ZB accepts that Te Pou Matakana was entitled to receive the funds from Te Puni Kōkiri, was entitled to pay out the sums that it did to its shareholders, and that there was nothing improper about those payments.
“The way in which the item was worded could have been taken to mean that John Tamihere personally benefitted from the payments.”
The apology was delivered on behalf of Newstalk ZB rather than Hosking himself.
“Newstalk ZB accepts that Tamihere did not benefit personally from the payments and sincerely apologises to John Tamihere.”