Well what a busy last couple of days I’ve had in the House. Yesterday after supporting International Worker’s Day (May Day), I decided to attack the Māori MPs in National in my General Debate.
The main reason I did that was because they have showed very little support for a fine man and good Māori advocate, Nuk Korako, who resigned because he was basically sick and tired of the zero support he would get for Māori issues.
I called some of the National MPs useless and singled out Jo Hayes, Simon Bridges, Dan Bidois and Paula Bennett – I make no apologies for calling them useless. When you’re in the Chamber, particularly in the General Debate, it’s all on and you take no prisoners. That’s how it’s always been and you can either handle it or not.
Paula Bennett took offence at what I said and is now trying to play the race card and the bully card – this from a former Social Development Minister who waged war on beneficiaries and in my view, worked against the interests of her people.
She is trying to spin the line that I don’t think she’s Māori which is not what I said in my speech – I said some days she’s Māori and some days she’s not, and that’s an undeniable fact.
However the reality is that Paula is Māori by virtue of her whakapapa and the argument isn’t whether she is Māori or not, the argument is actually has she ever advocated for Māori; has she ever taken a pro-Māori stance or a Kaupapa Māori stance – and the answer to that is unequivocally no.
And she needed to be called out for that, and I have no regrets about what I said about her or the other National MPs.
So here’s a video of question time and my general debate speech is in the comments section below. What do you think?
Question 8 – Hon Paula Bennett to the Minister of Employment from New Zealand Parliament on Vimeo.
Willie Jackson is the Minister of Employment
I think Willie Jackson makes a good point. It’s easy to say you support Māori when you don’t actually have to interact with maori and coexist with Māori, or that you can pat yourself on the back for protesting something Māori with out even supporting maori even a little bit.
I think Bidois is French, not Italian, and that Bennett is in Parliament to represent all NZ’ers, not just Maori.
However, her probing of how Maori are Maori participating in a work scheme, and to what extent their whakapapa is examined is disgusting, absurd,and is the sort of scary tactic perfected by Adolf Hitler, terribly successfully. It’s scary.
This what % of Maoriness is needed to be Maori is a theme of Nelson’s Amy Agnes-Mary Brooke who the Aus ‘Spectator’ publishes – and she publishes herself. A lot. I think that it’s also one of the Hobson’s Pledge gripes too.
This is Paula pandering to Pakeha voters who think that Maori and pretend-Maori, have lives of privilege which they do not, but which Pakeha pay for. Paula was selling-out Maori. In fact selling out all our young guys – something National does.
The scenario claims that anyone who wakes up one morning “feeling Maori”, can access billions. It’s pernicious and intellectually dishonest, but I daresay it has an appeal to people who need someone to blame for their own inadequacies- at many levels actually.
Paula was probably also off-balance yesterday by her peculiar ill-fitting frock which kept puckering up around her bust, and I don’t know why Judith couldn’t have lent her one of her husband’s bed-jackets blatantly worn in Parliament to appeal to Chinese voters.
“I said some days she’s Māori and some days she’s not, and that’s an undeniable fact.”
Wrong on two counts.
What you said (from Hansard):”Paula Bennett—well, she doesn’t know if she’s a Māori. Some days she does and some days she doesn’t.”
And claiming to know what another person thinks (especially on a day by day basis) is not factual at all.
“When you’re in the Chamber, particularly in the General Debate, it’s all on and you take no prisoners. That’s how it’s always been and you can either handle it or not.”
It is not how it has always been. Some MPs manage to speak and debate in a robust but dignified manner. On this occasion I don’t think you did.
“has she ever advocated for Māori; has she ever taken a pro-Māori stance or a Kaupapa Māori stance – and the answer to that is unequivocally no.”
I suspect that that claim is unequivocally false.
Bennett voted with the previous Government for bills introduced by the Māori Party. You may argue about how beneficial any of those bills were for Māori, but I don’t think you can argue that the intent was pro-Māori and advocating for Māori.
“Some MPs manage to speak and debate in a robust but dignified manner. On this occasion I don’t think you did.”
Correct, Pete, especially when Labour are meant to be the politics of kindness etc. However repulsive Paula Bennett may be, the N Z Parliament deserves a higher standard of behaviour than e.g. talkback radio.
Can you list those bills please.
The National Government that Paula Bennett was a part of took a number of pro-Māori acheivements. Leading ‘significant policies’ at Fifth National Government of New Zealand (Wikipedia): Treaty of Waitangi/Settlements
The involvement of the National government within this particular area was seen through their approach in settlements. National government’s involvement of Treaty affairs:
– Ngai Tuhoe deed of settlement
These involved discussion and planning of guidelines which were negotiated with two significant iwis of Taranaki. This also involved Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations Christopher Finlayson.
– Apology to affiliate Te Arawa
In relation to past Treaty breaches and the actions of the previous governments at the time of the land wars. John Key apologized for the actions and doings of the abuses to the Te Arawa iwi and hapu.
– Negotiation with Te Atiawa and Taranaki iwi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_National_Government_of_New_Zealand#Treaty_of_Waitangi/Settlements
Settlements? nothing else? I remember reading that they thought the settlement process was rushed. Thanks for the link to the National party website but it didnt actually address the question of “significant policies” re “pro-Māori achievements”
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