GUEST BLOG: David Tank – Referendum shows huge support for cannabis reform
Whether the weed referendum passes on Specials or not the gap will close making Andrew Little’s assertion that the country is not ready for cannabis reform when the vote is almost 50/50 a truly laughable proposition.
Consider too that the no campaign was run like the ‘Brexit’ Yes campaign most ‘no’ votes were a result of extensive advertising and promotion using false data and ‘alternative’ facts. The last three months, my newsfeeds were inundated with paid-for posts claiming long debunked ‘facts’ and base-less fear mongering.
Our parliament has a responsibility to legislate for the good of all New Zealander’s and it is obvious to those informed of the facts that the status quo is not in the public interest. Leaving cannabis management in the hands of organised crime is frankly unconscionable.
So even if the referendum fails to win an outright majority it is beholden to our Parliament to do the right thing and put the bill to a conscience vote. A vote I would be picking that would be won very easily.
All it should take (in a perfect world) for near unanimity in the house is to apply the exact same science-based approach used to eliminate Covid. If all MP’s were to do just that the Cannabis Control Bill would pass in a heartbeat.
So Mr Little should not be allowed to blithely consign this important legislative reform to the dust bin of history but rather he should have his and the rest of the Labour leaderships feet held to the fire until they agree to put the matter to a vote.
Which brings us to the Greens membership who have this weekend a window of opportunity in applying some heat by refusing to ratify a supply and confidence deal with Labour unless a vote is agreed to in the house.
Frankly, it’s hardly something Labour needs to die in a ditch over. For Labour to refuse such a request would I think engender a huge backlash from its own supporters who are in the main supportive of the proposed legislation.
And as has been pointed out, allowing 51 percent of the country to criminalise 49 percent of the country is a patent absurdity. The support level is too high to be ignored, cannabis law in New Zealand needs to change.
So write, call, protest if you must but make sure our currently triumphant new government gets the message. You dance with the ones that brung you… this law needs to pass.
David Tank is a thinker and good bugger.
If we can kill a baby at nine months and we can put people to sleep who asks surely we can have a fu Ken smoke and grow some cannabis. I noticed a lot of money was put into the say nope to dope campaign. The fact over a million people voted for change something needs to happen. We cannot keep saying our police will use a health approach our police have shown they are racist and so are our courts and entire justice system. Decriminalising will be a start but we need to do more. Jacinda has a mandate let’s see if she can make the hard decisions if not she will be gone at the next election and so will all but one Maori seat.
Our parliament has a responsibility to legislate for the good of all New Zealander’s and it is obvious to those informed of the facts that the status quo is not in the public interest.
So very true!
Bullshit Kheala are you saying more Maori in prison is in the public interest and gangs selling drugs. What about having your illicit pills tested when going to a concert, courtesy of our government is that in the public interest?
Agree with you 100%.
IMO, rather than mess around with any more votes they just need to get on with it! Decriminalise NOW! The law as-is causes immense harm, to families and to entire communities, and so to all of us here in Aotearoa. They have the power to act, to fix it, ..It is time to act on this.
“Andrew Little’s assertion that the country is not ready for cannabis reform when the vote is almost 50/50 a truly laughable proposition”.. Absolutely… !! That utterance, coming from a senior minister in what is supposed to be a progressive government, is bound to cost said government some of it’s support.. This is not what we voted for Andy.. Considering how much of the anti progress vote was bought by the injection of massive financial, and personal interference by the same lunatics trying to turn the USA into a burning hole in the ground, then Littles words have the ring of cowardice about them… I have two words for you Andy the gimp… Holland, and Portugal.. Go and look at what’s happened there after legalisation… They solved the massive problems caused by the same stupidity foisted on all western government by the Americans, purely to remove hemp as a competitor to petro chemical fuel, plastic, and pretty much everything else that hemp worked better for than petroleum products ever will, without the massive pollution, and environmental disasters caused by those products… I’ve voted labour all my adult life, and would have to have lost the majority of my cognitive abilities before I would vote for the nationalist/colonialist party, as they can only be guaranteed to govern on behalf of the international drug cartels that finance The political parties (a la national) that are for sale to the highest bidder… But in saying that, he’s making it very hard to continue to support this government if the first thing they do is crap on all those people who trusted them to be rational, and forward thinking…..
his sayings were also the reason that he handed the helm to Jacinda, he was not able to put his foot down were needed and still doesn’t. It almost sounds like the nats voters holding them to ransom already
“So even if the referendum fails to win an outright majority it is beholden to our Parliament to do the right thing and put the bill to a conscience vote. A vote I would be picking that would be won very easily.”
If this is so go for it. But after the result of this referendum I think it is extremely unlikely that parliament would vote to overturn it.
D J S
If our government was doing the right thing they would have and should have made the decision themselves. They use the power they have when it suits them. We give them the power to make decisions and pass legislation on our behalf. It’s not always about the majority always getting what they want it’s about looking after us all not appeasing the same old people
Many our our Maori whanau gave labour their party vote I hope they are going to be bolder this term. It is difficult to try and please everyone. Let’s hope all the promises made during the election are upheld.
You called me stupid at one stage but I am not silly enough to believe that they will keep many of their promises not that they really made many hard and fast ones.
Write all those promises down Trev and you can bring them up like we brought up all Johns broken promises.
It is just one referendum on one particular proposed piece of legislation. If parliament won’t; appoint a committee to take public and expert submissions, to craft a new cannabis decriminalisation bill, then others may have to do this for them. After that (which may take a while), a new referendum should be easy to secure by petition:
“Anyone can start a petition to ask for a nationwide referendum, known as a ‘citizens initiated referendum’.
For a referendum to be held, you must get signatures in support of holding a referendum on your question from over 10% of eligible voters nationwide… Under the Citizens Initiated Referenda Act 1993, non-binding referendums can be held on any subject.”
https://www.parliament.nz/en/get-involved/have-your-say/seek-a-referendum/