Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee candidate Colin Kippen yesterday upped the stakes in his bid to unseat OHA Chairwoman Haunani Apoliona, accusing her and the agency's administration of poor management of their assets.

In response, Apoliona pointed the finger back at Kippen, executive director of the nonprofit Native Hawaiian Education Council. She said a recent audit of his agency also raised questions.

Kippen, a former OHA deputy administrator, is running for the O'ahu at-large seat held by Apoliona since 1996. Two other people are also running for the seat — Helene Honda and Sol Naluai, both of Honolulu. OHA elections will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot. All registered Hawai'i voters are eligible to vote in the election.

Kippen charged that since taking over as chairwoman in 2000, OHA has engaged in "outrageous" spending practices that "neglects the people who OHA was meant to serve."

He criticized the travel expenses associated with the trustees' advocacy of the Akaka bill and the Kau Inoa registry as excessive. Kippen said he supports the movement to gain federal recognition of a Native Hawaiian government entity, but believes travel to the Mainland has been excessive.

"Key OHA staff travel all across the country, including Canada, to host people, give away free T-shirts, and sign up people to Kau Inoa," Kippen said.

OHA has also "continually rebuked attempts by voters, the public and the Legislature to obtain information about their spending of millions of public trust and public tax dollars," he said.

He added: "OHA's annual budget is approximately $45 million and yet only $4 million (is) given out through the community grant process. Voters are in the dark and need to know where all this money is being spent."

Apoliona said the money spent on advocacy of the Akaka bill and Kau Inoa are justified, and are based on priorities set by the entire nine-member board of trustees.

"Advocating, lobbying and educating for the Akaka bill is a priority of the board of trustees," Apoliona said. The goal is to prepare Native Hawaiians to participate when it comes time to determine what a new government entity will look like, she said. "I don't think Mr. Kippen himself has done anything to help Hawaiians prepare."

Crystal Kua, OHA's director of communications, issued a statement in response to Kippen's charges.

Kua disputed Kippen's claim that only $4 million is given annually in grants. "In the 2007 fiscal year, OHA awarded about $8 million worth of grants in areas that include native rights, education, health, human services and economic development. Previous years included grants for specific needs, including a $1 million grant to assist the homeless."

Additionally, she said, OHA has become more transparent than in the past and she pointed out that spreadsheets listing OHA's expenditures on nation building, grants and travel costs are now posted online.

OHA critics have taken issue with the postings, suggesting that they are too vague and may have been manipulated to make the agency look good.

Kippen's Native Hawaiian Education Council coordinates about $34 million annually in federal funds through the Native Hawaiian Education Act. Monies go to programs that aid in the education of Native Hawaiians.

Apoliona pointed to a March 2008 U.S. Government Accountability Office report on the Native Hawaiian Education Act that concluded "the parties responsible for administering NHEA ... have not fulfilled many of their respective roles and responsibilities under the act."

Said Apoliona of Kippen's criticism: "I think he's misplacing his efforts."

Kippen said his agency asked for the audit. "We knew what the problems were," he said. The audit found that "the federal government had given us very little attention in its administration of this program."

While the audit concluded that there was little evaluation of the impact the grants have had on the education of Native Hawaiians, Kippen said it took the audit for the federal government to share data it had collected.

Kippen said he wants OHA to sponsor a forum for all candidates, adding that he looks forward to debating Apoliona. Apoliona said she is not interested.