Video by David Corrigan, Voice of Stephanie Salazar

HILO, Hawaii – It’s been a week since the Hawaii Attorney General came out with a formal opinion that all royalties from geothermal development on Hawaiian home lands should go to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.

Since then, not much has been said by the governor, even after we asked him directly.

One person who did have something to say last week was Keaukaha community leader Patrick Kahawaiola’a. Kahawaiola’a is not only a homelands beneficiary, but he was also a part of the geothermal working group that put together the report that many believe laid the foundation for the next wave of geothermal development on the island. Patrick says he supports the use of the resource.

In the spirit of Prince Kuhio Day, we asked Uncle Patrick if he ever thinks about whether or not Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole himself pondered issues like geothermal when it came to the Hawaiian Homes Act.