Petition: Dump Akana, Keep CEO

An OHA beneficiary wants to remove the embattled agency's chair and keep the chief executive officer, Kamana'opono Crabbe.

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Kaui Pratt-Aquino, who calls herself a beneficiary of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, wants to see major changes at OHA.

On Thursday she posted an online petition with the title “We Demand Pono Leadership For OHA Now.”

The way to do that, the petition explains, is to remove Rowena Akana as chair and keep Kamana’opono Crabbe as CEO.

The petition to the OHA Board of Trustees was generated in reaction to a board meeting Thursday in which Akana prohibited oral testimony.

It reads in part:

We write to you with extreme disappointment in Chair Akana’s refusal to give beneficiaries an opportunity to be heard. We are deeply offended by her actions because it is a violation of the board’s fiduciary duty to beneficiaries.

Listening to beneficiaries is central to your roles as Trustees.  OHA’s board serves beneficiaries, no one else, and the voices of our people should have been heard.

The letter adds, “It appears Akana is unfairly targeting Dr. Crabbe based on a personal dislike for him and not one measured by his job performance.”

Pratt-Aquino said Friday, “About 350 people have signed and it continues to grow and be shared.”

The online petition to remove Rowena Akana as OHA chair features a photo of Iolani Palace. Courtesy: Kaui Pratt-Aquino

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