Stuart Smith
National MP
Kaikoura
Over the last few years, we have seen a series of policies creep in which seek to establish co-governance roles for iwi organisations, and just when you think you had heard it all Nanaia Mahuta releases the ‘Future for Local Government Report’ (FFLGR), which takes it to another level.
So then, what is the future for local government? In short, the dissolution of the principle of one person one vote: a world where locally elected representative roles in decision making will be much reduced, with mana whenua appointments taking decision making power away from the people.
There is nothing in the report that will deliver better infrastructure, housing or transport solutions.
You can be forgiven if you are unaware of these proposals – as the mainstream media focused on another proposal: to give 16-year-olds the right to vote in local body elections. They steered well clear of the mana whenua issue. Could the $55m Public Interest Journalism Fund have anything to do with their silence?
The 300-page FFLGR report is nothing short of a power grab for iwi elites led by Nanaia Mahuta and it will not be for your benefit.
Meanwhile the Three Waters legislation is about to come back from Select Committee, and I am surprised how little detail of this proposed legislation has reached the public square. The Select Committee hearings revealed more detail of how the Three Waters mega entities will work and it is far more antidemocratic than any of us imagined. Mana whenua can in effect control planning rules and regulations for water in their region: your local council will have no control over this.
It seems that the Labour government have turned a deaf ear to the clear majority of New Zealanders who are concerned about the loss of their communities’ Three Waters Assets. They would rather pursue their ideological reshaping of New Zealand into a tribal utopia, led by an elite who have inherited positions of power. Meritocracy will be replaced by nepotism.
So, what can you do about it? Being aware of the very real threat to our freedom is the first step.
Talk about it with your friends and family, and most importantly, don’t kowtow to these policies for fear of being labelled a racist. Those that use that term are the true racists.
I want to live in a country where people are judged by the content of their character and where the principle of one person one vote, with each vote having the same value, continues to underpin our democracy.
Wake up New Zealand, our democracy depends on your voice being heard.
