CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE: Obama Foundation Leader/Hawaii Water Official Refused to Release Water Resources To Fight Hawaii Fires

M. Kaleo Manuel is an Obama Foundation leader and  Hawaii water official who refused to release water resources and let landowners fight the Maui fire. Obama’s mega mansion was divinely spared wild rampaging fires. Manuel claims “water requires true conversations about equity” – only for the mega rich it seems.

And now Obama is exploiting the fires to raise money for his scam foundation.

There’s a dark but hard TRUTH to the Maui catastrophe that has led to over 110 tragic deaths. As wildfires raged, desperate residents petitioned state officials to send more water for firefighting & to help protect their properties from fire. That request went unanswered for…

— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) August 17, 2023

 

Water Resource Management Deputy Director in Hawaii M. Kaleo Manuel is an Inaugural Obama Leader for the Asia Pacific Region with the Obama Foundation #Obama #MauiFires #Hawaii #globalism pic.twitter.com/4zpF73gYFs

— 🕳💣💫💯The Last Analog Hero👁👻👾🦾15053370631 (@freejerry88) August 17, 2023

Makes you wonder what really happed in Maui. https://t.co/K0zT8OH7mg pic.twitter.com/GTddszyquB

— Cernovich (@Cernovich) August 17, 2023

Before you go donating to the Obama Foundation for Hawaii victims, just remember Haitians didn’t see a dime of the $6Billion raised by the Clinton Foundation for earthquake relief. Choose who you are donating to wisely. pic.twitter.com/1zGswHJIxA

— Melissa Tate (@TheRightMelissa) August 17, 2023

Here is M. Kaleo Manuel, the Hawaii water official who refused to release water resources and let landowners fight the Maui fire, explaining his "philosophy" about water:

"Native Hawaiians treated water as one of the earthly manifestations of a god…We've become used to looking… pic.twitter.com/hjsWqdVtxf

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) August 17, 2023

A State Official Refused To Release Water For West Maui Fires Until It Was Too Late

The fight over water is nothing new on Maui. But the impact on the county’s ability to battle fires is coming clear.

By Stewart Yerton, Civil Beat, August 15, 2023

With wildfires ravaging West Maui on Aug. 8, a state water official delayed the release of water that landowners wanted to help protect their property from fires. The water standoff played out over much of the day and the water didn’t come until too late.The dispute involved the Department of Land and Natural Resources’ water resource management division and West Maui Land Co., which manages agricultural and residential subdivisions in West Maui as well as Launiupoko Irrigation Co., Launiupoko Water Co., Olowalu Water Co. and Ha’iku Town Water Association. 

DLNR delayed releasing water requested by West Maui Land Co. to help prevent the spread of fire, sources familiar with the situation said.

Specifically, according to accounts of four people with knowledge of the situation, M. Kaleo Manuel, a Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner and DLNR’s deputy director for water resource management, initially balked at West Maui Land Co.’s requests for additional water to help prevent the fire from spreading to properties managed by the company.
A Note On Anonymous Sources

Civil Beat generally uses on-the-record sources. However, we occasionally use unnamed sources when a source is sharing important information we wouldn’t have otherwise been able to obtain and when they could face negative consequences for speaking publicly. The reporter and at least one editor must know the identity of the source and the use of anonymity must be approved by a senior editor. You can read more about our anonymous sources policy here.

According to the sources, Manuel wanted West Maui Land to get permission from a taro, or kalo, farm located downstream from the company’s property. Manuel eventually released water but not until after the fire had spread. It was not clear on Monday how much damage the fire did in the interim or whether homes were damaged.

ADVERTISEMENT

Manuel declined to be interviewed for this story. DLNR’s communications office said in an email that it was supporting the state’s emergency communications response and “unable to facilitate your inquiry at this time.”

Glenn Tremble, an executive with West Maui Land Co. said to have knowledge of the dispute, did not return a request for comment.

However, Gov. Josh Green spoke candidly Monday during a press briefing about conflicts over water on Maui – although not the DLNR-West Maui Land Co. incident directly – and encouraged news media to explore the issue. The conflicts are rooted in the diversion of water by large plantations, which starved downstream users from a resource essential for Native Hawaiian agriculture, particularly the traditional practice of growing taro or kalo.

Keep reading….