What will you do you improve how the East Coast gets represented better and not just forgotten by Wellington?
Peter
Candidate Answers
Candidate
Answer
This concern cuts to the heart of people's disillusionment with our democratic process.
I gave a speech on Thursday at Gisborne's Holy Trinity Church that outlines my own concern about the "puppet strings from Wellington". See below:
SPEECH: Meet the candidates, Holy Trinity Church Gisborne. Thursday November 10 2011.
So . . . three minutes to persuade you to vote for United Future.
That’s one minute less than a conversation at a speed dating evening.
Now I’ve never tried speed dating, but a woman I know did, and the men she met sounded a lot like the political parties on offer here tonight.
- There’s Labour trying to impress you with their money . . . which is all borrowed, or else your money once they have you in a relationship.
- There’s National –the most attractive prospect in the room at this stage, but pretty superficial, and they have some dubious friends.
- There’s the bad boy “devil take the hindmost” ACT – “What are you selling Donny? What have you got?” although obviously Don Brash is no Marlon Brando.
- There are some unemployed artists, actors and activists talking about their hi-tech high-paying green jobs . . . which don’t exist . . . and certainly not 100,000 of them.
- The Maori Party aren’t here, but I guess if they were they would be the bloke who expected my friend to go out with them because they were the same race.
And I guess United Future is the quiet decent sensible guy who should have talked himself up more . . . should have spun a bit more of a line so he got remembered for more than just having thick luxuriant hair.
If I sound cynical it’s because I think New Zealand’s party system is non-democratic democracy.
The management of the East Coast on Wellington’s puppet strings has never delivered the golden future we get promised every three years, has it?
We get given the same cookie cutter solutions as everyone else.
We get divided and ruled along lines of race, income, rich poor, old young, left right when we should be finding ways to work in harmony and decide on a vision for our wonderful part of the world.
Safe happy kids?
All our rivers planted?
No-one hungry?
A job for anyone who wants one?
Why not? With the right plan and agreement here it is entirely possible.
Politicians are mostly nice, well-meaning people, but they work in a system where their main focus is grabbing and clinging onto power, rather than improving things for us here on the East Coast.
It’s their party, not Te Tairawhiti that has their primary loyalty.
What we need is representation of the East Coast in Wellington instead of representation of the Wellington’s political parties here.
I reckon it is up to us to acknowledge our problems, recognise how unacceptable they are then get to work together to change things in the long term, rather than three year terms.
I believe Wellington should cooperate with us where they can, and get out of our way where they can’t.
When United Future asked me to stand on the East Coast, that’s pretty much what I said to them.
I thought that would be the end of it, but to my surprise, they thought it was a good idea, so I got like-minded people in other regions to join them too.
I had a better look at their policies. Most of them are pretty good – but I can’t explain them in three minutes.
United Future are a centrist, family-focused, community-minded, political party that believes in moderation, self-determination, resilience and common sense, and that all sounded good to me.
United Future sees policy through the prism of whether or not it would make New Zealand the best place in the world to live work and raise a family, and that sounded good to me as well.
Environmentalism not tied to extremes of socialism and feminism, where people are seen as part of nature rather than its enemy? Wonderful!
United Future will be a non-National Party member of a coalition government after the next election – perhaps the only one.
Your vote can be a voice for the East Coast in this year’s election. In government, pushing for our right to be united, innovative to make the East Coast the best region in the world to live work and raise a family.
If that sounds good to you, party vote United Future.
Vote for me too if you get really excited. Thanks.
Hi Peter,
It requires a constant effort to ensure the needs of our district are not forgotten or simply overlooked in Wellington. We have such unique challenges and what works elsewhere will not necessarily be successful here given our demographics, isolation and levels of deprivation. I grew up in Gisborne and moved back here seven years ago. My grandparents are from Ruatoria and Tikitiki. I understand our community and I work hard to get around and talk to as many people as possible about what they need from government, what frustrates them, what pleases them, and I take that to Wellington every week. When we were in government we recognised the special requirements of the east coast by funding things that we didn't fund elsewhere that were specifically designed to help grow our local economy, create jobs and improve our standard of living and health. We funded infrastructure that our local council couldn't afford such as roading for the forestry industry, and schemes to upgrade (or sometimes completely replace) substandard housing here and in Northland. We also brought in the subsidy programme for drinking water and wastewater schemes with the East Coast in mind. Unfortunately that flexibility and ability to see "the big picture" has disappeared under this government.
I've battled hard to save our rail line to napier, to try and get a school bus trial for Kaiti students, and opposed deep sea oil drilling off the east coast and fracking. I've gone to Wellington every week and raised these issues with my colleagues to get them on side so we can act when we are in government. Our Labour party policy on deep sea drilling and fracking reflects the discussions parekura and I have had with our colleagues on these important local issues.
But bottom line you have to just get around your community and be accessible when people need you. Thats what I've done since I've been in parliament and with the additional resources that come with being an electorate MP I would make sure that resource was used to give constituents even greater access to myself and to other decision makers in wellington. Not on glossy pamphlets promoting myself!
Moana
