Te Pāti Māori Spokesperson for Te Tiriti, Tākuta Ferris, has called on the Governor General to block Royal Assent of the Marine and Coastal Area (Takutai Moana) Amendment Bill, after receiving a petition with 20-thousand signatures opposing the bill.
Te Pāti Māori will return the foreshore and seabed to the rightful ownership of mana whenua when elected into government.
“For the first time in the history of this nation, the Governor General must block royal assent to the Foreshore and Seabed bill,” said Ferris.
“For over 21-years Māori have had to pull their energy together to prove the Government test. Countless protests, countless High Court wins to get nowhere. Whenever Māori rise above the test, this Luxon government decides to change it and nullify those who have proven successful.
“Luxon has made it clear that bringing our Te Tiriti o Waitangi disputes to Parliament is a waste of time. Te iwi Māori now needs to elevate our mana and Te Tiriti issues to a constitutional level, directly with the Governor General. Until that happens, she must immediately block royal assent.
The call comes after a petition opposing amendments to the Marine and Coastal Area Act was delivered from the far north by Reuben Taipari, gathering 19,598 signatures in a matter of days.
“I commend Reuben for his hustle and mahi pulling together a massive amount of support against this Foreshore and Seabed confiscating bill.
“All descendants of He Whakaputanga, Te Tiriti, and the iwi leadership of today must now escalate our issues directly to the Governor-General. It’s time for her to get her hands involved in looking after her people.
Well done and thank you Ferris for raising yet another CoC insidious Bill in the pipeline and requesting the GG to block it until it is resolved. However I have to say, if in future you have internal party ‘dirty laundry’ you wish to air, please do this behind closed doors and not publicly. As part of the Left you all need every valuable resource to untangle the mess this dastardly CoC have inflicted on our lovely NZ. While I’m sure you had valid reasons for raising what was obviously a contentious issue for you, it should have been done in private. The Left must collectively oppose all the ghastly and racist actions/bills being flung around and ensure they either don’t make the cut or are reversed ASAP once this obnoxious and racist CoC has gone.