Like all modern democracies 21st century New Zealand contains people of many ethnicities and viewpoints. At election time they are all able to cast their votes equally to determine the type of government that we want. That is the essence of democracy for which our forebears fought for – and died for – in the two world wars.
However, in New Zealand, despite there being no full-blood Maoris or even half bloods (just a group who have a minority of Maori blood in their predominant European make-up) certain power manipulators have pushed for race-based “Maori wards” in local government in violation of the democratic principle of an equal and universal vote.
It is quite remarkable that, for a group of people who have been detribalised for more than a century and who don’t even have a preponderance of Maori blood in them, it is only now – in the 21st century – that we are told that they must suddenly have separate representation in the form of “Maori wards”. It is yet another power grab by the tribal elite against the rest of us.
Those part-Maoris elected to a “Maori ward” cannot be expected to make decisions for the public good as other councillors have to – but only for the benefit of their tribe. They have no reason to care about the rights or welfare of the general public to whom they are not accountable. They are accountable only to those part-Maoris who choose to be on the “Maori roll”, so why should they worry about the rest of us? Maori wards are the utmost in racial exclusiveness as, by their definition, they exclude the rest of society. It is hard to think of a more debilitating measure in respect of the common good.
In the coming local body elections those voters in municipalities that have already brought in Maori wards pursuant to the Ardern government’s allowance and promotion of such without ratepayer input, have a chance to get rid of these racist and undemocratic seats on councils, and anyone who believes in an inclusive democracy has only one option and that is to vote them out.
However, a group pf churchmen have spoken out and encouraged their ever dwindling congregations to vote for these racist measures. These include Catholics, Anglicans, Methodists and Baptists but not, to their credit, Presbyterians.
Ever since the 1970s and 1980s when the World Council of Churches (Protestant) and the Vatican sent money to murdering terrorist groups in southern Africa there has been a steady desertion of good people from the increasingly political and Left Wing established churches, and this latest promotion of apartheid by loud mouthed clerics will only hasten the process. People like to make up their own minds on non-spiritual things such as Maori wards and do not like to be dictated to by clergy who lead comfortable, often lazy and rather parasitical lives.
Probably the most ridiculous statement of this self-appointed group of politicians in dog-collars came from the Catholic Bishop Emeritus, Bishop Peter Cullinane, who said, “Jesus didn’t exclude people”. No, but these Maori wards do – they exclude all people other than those part-Maori who are on the Maori roll.
Like all New Zealanders part-Maoris are already represented – as is every citizen – by the councillors of general wards whom they can elect. If they wish, part-Maoris can also stand for council in a general ward – nothing to stop them and indeed many of them have been elected in this way. So, what is Cullinane up to by talking about “excluding” people? No Maoris have been excluded from voting for councillors for well over a century.
It seems that in his twisted mind he is trying to propagate the lie that part-Maoris are excluded from voting for councils. In fact, he seems to be implying that to “exclude” is something very bad – a sin. If so, he’s the one committing the sin by promoting race-based wards that exclude by far the majority of the ratepaying public.
Race based Maori wards are backward, exclusive to part-Maoris and detrimental to the public good. In every municipality where the vote is about to be taken on Maori wards the only option for anyone who believes in genuine democracy and a non-racist society is to vote them OUT.