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I’m eternally grateful that at last, we’re heading in the right direction, even though we were again treated to a display of slogans and catchphrases on Monday when the Prime Minister made her announcement.
She was still insisting that she said from the start “We must go hard and we must go early” and that now she is continuing with that policy. Well, you and I know that it’s just ‘sloganspeak’: sowing seeds that will grow in the minds of the great unwashed about what an amazing job she’s done.
Clearly from the social media responses, the so-called “great unwashed” seem to be completely in awe of her wonderful leadership as they bash their keyboards with platitudes and nonsense.
It really was just more slogans – and with carefully orchestrated pauses, emotional tonality and excessive grimacing:
“We must do everything we can to protect the health of New Zealanders.” “
We have to make far reaching and unprecedented decisions”
“These are unprecedented circumstances.”
Same words – different day.
She really does need to do something about those weak medial consonants that so detract from her speeches and make her very hard to take seriously. She’s young and potentially vibrant and she can look very good on camera, but turning the letter “t” into a “d” all the time is sloppy and teenager like as are her expressions. Very youthful and emotive, when we need mature, cool heads and steady hands. It may be colloquial and it may sound just like the home electorate, but it doesn’t inspire confidence.
The Prime Minister in her announcement to the nation on Monday would have done well to use more of the “we” instead of the “I”. That’s how leadership works, especially in an emergency situation when clearly everything being done is the result of protracted consultation with many people some of whom are mature and sensible (maybe?).
So what exactly would I have wanted from the Prime Minister on Monday?
Simple. A clear statement that she has a strong team gathered around her and having tried to manage this crisis from a moderate position, it’s become clear that it’s not working and the time has come to implement the next levels and to do so quickly. Level 3 starts right now and on Wednesday at midnight we’re going to level 4.
Reassurance that food supply chains are in place and supermarkets and essential services will remain open so no need to be concerned, we will all get through this together and the detail is on the Covid-19 web site. Then let Robertson explain the economic things.
There you go. Easy and under a minute of facts without slogans.
Those of us who had supermarkets to raid and strip bare could then rush off and do so and those of us who had genuine work to do making sure businesses are wrapped up and ready to close the doors could get on with that.
I still don’t get why there’s a mad rush on toilet paper – I’d have thought that’s very much servicing the wrong end but there you go…
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