We are all used to MSM’s bias and trickery but it still galls me to read headlines such as RNZ’s “Hamilton City Council votes to retain Māori wards”. No. We voted to have a public referendum, knowing that the majority of our citizens are not racist and will get rid of race-based politics at the next election.
The identity extremists are trying to make racial division (which they mockingly call ‘partnership’) normalised by implying the country’s leadership is behind them. Under Ardern, it was. But not now. People are standing up for equality under the law. Yet, across the country, as councils consistently vote for referenda, the local headlines follow the nationwide conspiracy.
As a Hamilton City councillor, I argued that Māori wards have failed, with a meagre 14 per cent voter turnout; not even Māori care about them. It is hard to claim a mandate on that basis. This was no racist attack: it was calling for a discussion of better alternatives.
Councillor Geoff Taylor argued that Māori wards are defeatist and condescending – telling Māori that you can’t make it in real politics. He encouraged Māori to be ambitious, which is hardly a racist thing to do.
Māori ward councillor Maria Huata made an impassioned speech that was enjoyable to listen to if you don’t mind cherry-picked history. She noted that New Zealand’s first election in 1853 restricted voting to individual land owners. Māori, who owned land collectively, were excluded. This was racist, except that miners, farm hands and most of the population were in the same boat. Nor did she mention that the law changed in 1867 to allow all Māori men to vote, but white men who didn’t own land had to wait until 1879. What any of this has to do with 2024 is beyond me.
I lost count of the number of time te Tiriti was mentioned, which is bizarre given councils are not crown entities. The “Local” in “Local Government” is a giveaway. They are regional organisations not subject to the Treaty. The government imposes an obligation only to encourage Māori to participate in the decision-making process, which means they get a chance to vote like the rest of us.
