Summarised by Centrist
Te Pāti Māori has voted to suspend Te Tai Tokerau MP Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. The motion was passed at a National Council hui on Thursday, according to Waatea News.
The council passed four resolutions. They included resetting the Te Tai Tokerau Electorate Executive, finding that Kapa-Kingi had breached the party’s constitution, suspending her, and directing the National Executive to decide how to carry out the suspension.
If confirmed, Kapa-Kingi will sit as an independent MP.
Kapa-Kingi said the decision was disappointing. She said her electorate committee was not invited to the meeting and was denied a right of reply. “As far as I’m concerned, this so-called suspension has no mana,” she said.
The suspension follows weeks of conflict with party leadership. Kapa-Kingi was recently removed as party whip. Her son, Eru Kapa-Kingi, a former vice-president and Toitū te Tiriti campaigner, quit his role earlier this year. He accused the party of having a dictatorial leadership style.
Te Pāti Māori accused Mariameno Kapa-Kingi of overspending her parliamentary budget and said Eru had been dismissed after an incident involving racial slurs and threats towards Parliamentary security guards. Both have denied the claims.
Te Tai Tonga electorate, represented by MP Takuta Ferris, abstained from the suspension vote. The electorate later said it did not recognise any resolutions from the hui and called for a vote of no confidence in party president John Tamihere and the National Executive.
A party spokesperson said the matter remains before the National Council and that the party’s constitution is guiding all proceedings.
In a related incident, perhaps indicative of the party’s turmoil, Te Pāti Māori’s truck, used to promote the candidacy of recently elected Oriini Kaipara, was repossessed by the finance company.
Read more over at RNZ and The NZ Herald
