The Daily Blog Open Mic – Saturday 11 March 2017

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openmike

 

Announce protest actions, general chit chat or give your opinion on issues we haven’t covered for the day.

Moderation rules are more lenient for this section, but try and play nicely.

 

 

10 COMMENTS

  1. NZ MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT IS BING GUTTED BY GOVERNMENT SECRETLY.

    SHOCKING REVELATIONS – GOVERNMENT IS NOW GUTTING YOUR ONLY FULL TRANSPORT AGENCY (MoT) THAT ADMINISTERS OUR WHOLE TRANSPORT MODAL SYSTEM OF RAIL, ROADS, PORTS AND AIR TRANSPORT SYSTEMS.

    NOTE; NZTA IS ONLY A (ROAD CONTROLLING AUTHORITY) – (RTA)

    SO WE ARE NOW BEING LEFT WITH NO “ALL TRANSPORT” PRINCIPAL ADVISORY AGENCY WHO’S JOB IT IS TO ADVISE THE GOVERNMENT ON ALL TRANSPORT SYSTEMS AND THEIR NEEDS.

    HERE IS A MESSAGE FROM WINSTON PETERS THAT SHOWS THE PURGING BY GOVERNMENT OF SENIOR NZ TRANSPORT

    NZ FIRST – Leader’s message
    HON WINSTON PETERS; 10TH MARCH 2017.

    Three staff who worked at the Ministry of Transport who lost their jobs during a restructure need a public explanation.

    Their dismissal happened whilst a fraudster was “involved in advising how the Ministry of Transport change would be managed”.

    Where are they now? Do they have a job and income? Did they survive redundancy?

    The fraudster has just been sentenced to three years’ jail for stealing $750,000 from the Ministry.

    Her clever, deceitful responses when questioned on irregularities meant the fraud went undiscovered for over three years.

    But during that time, at least three staff, who lost their jobs, were sounding the alarm over her activities.

    These staff members deserve our admiration instead of suffering the typical response that whistle-blowers get in this country.

    They were denigrated and then dismissed.

    They were doing their job but the bosses weren’t doing theirs, that is, they failed to act.

    The Auditor-General, who was then in charge at the Ministry, says he has no recall of the three raising matters with him directly.

    Did they raise this issue with others who mentioned it to him?

    An inquiry has been ruled out.

    The Auditor-General says he has learned from this experience.

    He has also gone on to a top job.

    There is nothing decent or fair about this.

    Did he or the government spare a thought for the three who lost their jobs?

    The three honest New Zealanders.

    The three who did the right thing.

    The three who exhibited traits we value in a fair and civil society.

    The Auditor-General denies talk of whistle-blowers. He claims he discovered the fraud through tips from “external” sources.

    Nevertheless, if we allow those who raise the red flag to be crucified, why will anyone speak out in the future?

    What this case tells us is that it’s safer to put your head down, let the crime go on and collect your pay each week.

    But this issue is bigger than the Auditor-General, it goes to the heart of fair government.

    The Auditor-General admits the fraudster was involved, at least in part, in the restructuring. By all accounts she was an expert at talking her way out of difficult situations and convincing the boss that everything was above board.

    The Auditor-General and government must contemplate their actions. If the Auditor-General or any other senior staff member was manipulated, and characters’ smeared, the very least he and government must do is correct the serious wrong against those who lost their jobs.

    We all know that once made redundant it is often hard to get another job. There’s a permanent smudge on one’s CV.

    The government should have an inquiry and not arrogantly rule one out.

    The government’s job is to right this grievous wrong.

    And hopefully some qualified legal counsel is getting ready to do what the government won’t do – get them justice.

    And the Auditor-General has put into serious question his qualifications for his job.

    Rt Hon Winston Peters

    Leader of New Zealand First

    Member of Parliament for Northland

    Winston on Facebook

    Winston on Twitter

    Winston on Instagram

  2. I did make time to go to the Housing Action Canterbury – Public Meeting at the Cardboard Cathedral. on Thursday. Both the Labour and Green spokespeople were there and did a good job. Minto pulled it together well. The DHB rep was compelling as were the State Housing tenants that had their say.

    National’s current housing policies and those responsible were conclusively exposed as immoral and callous, myopically focused on efficiency of service. We need to find back to a New Zealand that has social conscience. We can rebuild the fabric of our society by supporting those in our communities who cannot afford a house to live in by providing healthy State Housing – like most other OECD countries. We are a disgrace to thinking people at this point in time.

    The time has come for New Zealand to vote for those parties that will commit to addressing our housing crisis in a meaningful way, for the long haul!

    http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/money/2017/03/new-zealand-housing-most-unaffordable-in-the-world-the-economist.html

  3. Attacking from the Shadows

    The Standard sinks to a cowardly new low in attack journalism.

    You would think that if someone at the Centrist Labour Party aligned ‘The Standard’ wanted to indulge in an attack on the Maori Party they would have at least had the decency not to hide their identity.

    The Centrist blogsite, ‘The Standard’ regularly bans and censors Left commentators. Especially those with the courage to stand behind their words and identify. No reputable journalistic outlet would publish such an attack, if the author did not have the courage of their convictions.

    If the author of such an attack, did not have the decency or courage to declare themselves, then The Standard should have refused to post it. (The Centrist, The Standard regularly bans Left commentators with the courage to stand behind their words and use their own names.) no reputable journalistic outlet would publish such an attack, if the author did not have the courage of their convictions.

    That The Standard would, marks them out.

    This is basic journalistic ethics. The authors of the The Standard cannot be unaware of what constitutes ethical journalism, so ignorance cannot be their excuse.

    We must conclude that The Standard and the Labour Party have deliberately decided to indulge in gutter journalism.

    Would The Standard host an anonymous attack on any of the white led parties?

    Of course not.

    This anonymous attack on The Maori Party is not only cowardly and unethical, it is racist.

    I have no interest in uncovering this racist author’s identity, may he return to the shadows where he belongs. He has no place in open public discourse.

    https://thestandard.org.nz/no-mana-maori-party/

    • Race hate is illogical.

      The weird thing is that the Labour Party will probably need the support of the Maori/Mana Alliance to form a government.
      The is part of long history of Labour preferring being in opposition to working respectfully with Maori.

      As Chris Trotter likes said once: The Labour Party would rather keep control of the losing side, than lose control of the winning side.

      The Maori Party was formed out of the Labour Party, after the Labour Government passed legislation specifically preventing Maori from taking legal action in the courts to test the unfair allocation of marine resources to Pakeha and foreign interests to the detriment of Maori.

      The Maori Party only formed a coalition with National out of necessity in the face of hostile sectarian distain, and dare I say it, racism from the Labour Party.

      Despite Labour’s patronising distain, the record shows that the Maori Party have often voted with the opposition parties, Labour and the Greens, against the National led government.

      The proof that Labour would rather control the losing side than win, was the huge effort the Labour Party put in to defeating the Mana Party in 2014 despite, the obvious fact that a Mana win would have guaranteed a Labour led government.

      The anonymous attack on the Maori Party by the Labour Party indicates that this illogical hatred is likely to be carried into the next election as well.

      Again delivering the country into the hands of the National Party.

  4. re racism (and sexism) and the Labour Party …Nanaia Mahuta is a case in point imo

    The Labour Party has badly let down Nanaia Mahuta a long time David Cunliffe loyalist . She would have made an excellent deputy to David Cunliffe’s leadership.

    She drew a huge number of Maori votes, when Labour sunk in all the Maori seats. She has worked honestly and diligently and modestly behind the scenes . She is the real McCoy

    ….the Labour Party treatment of her (and David Cunliffe) has led to unfair attacks on her from Maori outside the Labour Party as being ineffectual

    eg. Maori King :”He called for Mahuta, his cousin, to stand aside and let someone else represent the seat because she no longer has any “mana” in parliament”.

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/90257182/maori-king-endorses-waikatotainui-chairman-to-political-battle

    http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/74597088/andrew-little-dismisses-impact-of-nanaia-mahuta-demotion-on-maori-support

    The Labour Party has become a candy floss party ( Norm Kirk would be turning in his grave)

  5. http://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2017/03/patrick-gower-i-lost-control-of-an-insane-debate.html#.WMNS6d5xtUA.facebook

    “I lost control of an insane debate” Patrick Gower.

    I call bullshit on this self serving statement by Patrick Gower.

    Patrick Gower as debate moderator deliberately allowed Chris Hipkins to make a lengthy personal attack on Hone Harawira, that derailed and cheapened the debate over housing.

    Patrick Gower should not be allowed to host any political debates ever again, his moderation was unprofessional and partisan.

    Under Gower’s moderation personal attacks against representatives of Maori are perfectly OK.

    Gower is well and justifiably recognised as a Right Wing commentator who long ago gave up the right to be considered an impartial moderator or reporter of political events.

    Good on Hone for reacting to the this outrageous bias as he did, and pulling up Patrick Gower, and forcing an apology from him.

    In his own report on these events, I see that that Gower has since started to back track from his apology to Hone, attempting to deflect the spotlight away from himself and his appallingly unprofessional and partisan moderation of the debate.

    Patrick Gower has long been a bigoted and partisan disgrace to the profession of journalism. You can bet dollars to donuts that if Hone Harawira had started personally attacking any of the other politicians on the panel in this debate he would have pulled up short by Gower straight away.

    But Maori hold a special place of hate for Patrick Gower.

  6. “I zoned out and became a spectator and not a moderator”

    Patrick Gower

    “Zoned out”, Really, we are expected to believe this?

    Personally I think Gower was indulging his bias by allowing Bishop to personally abuse Harawira at some length.

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