As part of our drive to keep our comment section the best in New Zealand we showcase each week an example of a top-notch comment that adds value to The BFD.
Today’s comment was written by idbkiwi Thank you idbkiwi for taking the time to craft such an interesting comment.
Yeah, I know. It’s the silly season. It must be. Over the last couple of days, we’ve seen the Polly-of-the-year opinions rolled out with Herald’s Claire Trevett opting for Chris Luxon, Mike Munro for Jacinda Ardern and Stuff’s Parliamentary Press Gallery team elevating Nicola Willis.
Ignoring Munro’s salivating sycophancy in admiring Ardern’s “adroit” leadership (it seems that serving as her press secretary for eighteen months scars him still) we are left to wonder if Luxon’s performance has been especially skilful or whether it’s because the government has been especially execrable that’s moving the voters from red to blue. Still: it’s a fact the good but formerly listing ship National is certainly righting. As for Willis, she’s out there and working hard – agreed. But wasn’t she instrumental in placing National in the potty in the first place with the Muller fiasco? I reserve my judgement regarding her judgement but wish her well.
But politician of the year? Surely it has to be Nanaia Mahuta, with her bloviating belligerence, obfuscations, downright sneakiness and treasonous streak all helping to turn the public away from Labour. In some respects, the Tainui Princess has out-Machiavellied even Machiavelli’s legendary Prince.
Nanaia has done enough to be rewarded, perhaps with the title Slippery Nin, by slipping coastal and geothermal water into the ‘3-Waters’ legislation after the second reading of that bill, then, in a masterpiece of slipperiness, slipping in a new definition during the Whole of House Committee stage, expanding the ‘3-cum-5 Waters’ to ‘All Waters’ everywhere.
Not only that, Slippery Nin masterminded the ‘entrenchment’ fog-cannon to obscure her chicanery, so much so that neither press nor opposition have yet seen through, or past it, to the real deceit – the huge water-power grab.
PS:
Do note that the only waters exempted from iwi reach under the new definition are waters in a “pipe, tank, or cistern” but, be careful, that doesn’t exempt your hot water bottle, being none of those three. ‘Nice steam you got there, it’s just that we need some for our hangi’.
Easily, hands down, Polly of the Year: Slippery Nin.
