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Pressure is building on Te Pāti Māori, with Toitū Te Tiriti - the activist movement behind last year’s huge Hīkoi Mō Te Tiriti - now speaking out against the party.
Tensions have been bubbling in Te Pāti Māori for some time, with public ructions between the party leadership and their MPs Tākuta Ferris and Mariameno Kapa-Kingi last month.
Now, Eru Kapa-Kingi - a spokesperson for Toitū Te Tiriti, who is also Mariameno Kapa-Kingi’s son - has spoken publicly, raising concerns about the leadership of Te Pāti Māori. He described it as a “dictatorship model”.
He told Whakaata Māori that Toitū Te Tiriti would distance itself from Te Pāti Māori. In particular, he criticised comments from the party that suggested it was the only rightful voice of Māori in Parliament.
“It’s not true that Te Pāti Māori is the only kaupapa Māori party entitled to hold the Māori seats. That’s a false, ego-driven narrative. Power doesn’t sit with one party; it sits with the people,” he said, in the interview.
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