HILO, Hawaii – A motion to vacate the entire process of the Thirty Meter Telescope application was one of many motions denied at a pre-hearing conference on Friday.

Stephanie-Malia:Tabbada filed a motion to “vacate entire process for violation of BLNR and University of Hawaii fiduciary trust, rights, responsibilities, breach of contract, etc. mandated the by the law of the land”.

Tabbada, a party to the TMT contested case hearing that is getting underway, asked in her filing “Why can’t we leave Mauna Kea in it’s sacredness and stop destroying it any further?”

She also shared this personal story of Mauna Kea in her motion:

“My father was a filipino vet in WWII injured from gun wounds in his back down to his legs,” Tabbada wrote. “He came to Hawaii in 1946 and had this rash that couldn’t be treated by the doctors. My mom, Keaupuniokekaialiiokamokupuni, held her life and our upbringing in the living culture of this aina. We always look to the heavens, the mountains, the land and the kai and all seen and unseen elements for answers. We took a journey up to Mauna Kea, almost six hours one way and watched my mom hike to Lake Waiau and back. She came back with a small bottle filled with its precious content. We all prayed for the healing of my father and my poured the sacred water on his affected area and within three days he was healed.”

The University of Hawaii-Hilo and TMT opposed Tabbada’s motion.

The hearing officer, retired judge Riki May Amano, denied the motion, explaining that there is “no basis for the motion in this proceeding.”

NOTE: This is one part of a multi-part video series documenting the numerous motions ruled on by Judge Amano during the August 5, 2016 pre-hearing conference. The full video collection is here.