Will Hone keep his oath?

Written By: - Date published: 10:25 am, December 10th, 2008 - 22 comments
Categories: maori party - Tags:

Yesterday, the MPs were sworn in. After the section ‘pledge true allegiance to Queen Elizabeth the Second, her heirs and successors, according to law’, some of the Maori Party MPs (reading the oath in Maori) inserted, ‘and the Treaty’. They were asked to repeat the allegiance without the reference to the Treaty.

Hone Harawira went one better and read a totally different oath that made no reference to the Queen. Instead his pledged to do his best for the iwi and hapu of his electorate and the Maori people. They didn’t bother wasting their time trying to get him to say the correct oath.

Good on him I reckon, all this anachronistic rubbish at Parliament yesterday and today is such a waste of time, and completely alien to the real world. Hone’s oath is far more relevant.

But will he keep it?

Will Hone vote for National/ACT’s tax legislation cancelling the currently legislated tax cuts for low income workers? If he does, he will putting up tax disproportionally on Maori. Disgracefully, the Maori Party refused to take their turn to talk on the first reading of the tax bill last night but voted for that first reading. Looks they are going to support a law without having the pride to explain why they back it. One might expect that spinelessness from Turia but Hone made an oath – he should tell the people how he is keeping it by increasing their taxes and voting for a tax cut for the wealthy.

Will he vote to remove workers’ rights for the first 90 days? If he does, he will be putting at risk the livelihoods of Maori workers, many of whom are vulnerable workers in industries that will exploit the no rights period.

Will he vote to suspend the ETS? Putting the burden of paying our Kyoto liability on all taxpayers, including Maori, rather than the big, predominantly Pakeha-owned companies and farms that do most of the polluting. Will he vote to renege on the Maori people’s commitment to environmental guardianship?

Will he vote to remove community and Maori input into development decisions?

Will be speak up when National/ACT attacks beneficiaries? Will he be heard when National/ACT fails to put up the minimum wage?

I hope that Hone will be as good as his word.

22 comments on “Will Hone keep his oath? ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. will 1
    10 December 2008 at 10:33 am

    Hone will spit the dummy. He has to. His whole political life has been formed in opposing these bastards.

  2. leftrightout 2
    10 December 2008 at 10:39 am

    In my eyes Hone Harawria lost all credibility when he and his party chose to do a deal with National, this especially when Hone referred to John Key as a “slippery snake”.

  3. justthefacts 3
    10 December 2008 at 10:42 am

    I don’t really care if those on low incomes (currently being supported by me through WFF) lose some of my money every week as I have had enough of paying for kids that are not mine and paying for people who are stupid enough to have more kids than they can afford.

    A few years back this would have concerned me however after being pillaged by Labour for nine years to pay for their social engineering and election bribes I no longer care.

    I want tax cuts and I want them now, it is about time that Kiwi’s realise that life involves a fair bit of personal responsibility.

  4. leftrightout 4
    10 December 2008 at 10:46 am

    justthefacts, you’re welcome to leave.

  5. Daveski 5
    10 December 2008 at 12:33 pm

    Didn’t Hone state that he’d rather be stabbed from the front than from the back?

    On that basis, he has not only displayed credibility but a sense of pragmatism to get results over dogma.

  6. DeeDub 6
    10 December 2008 at 1:06 pm

    justthefacts….. you may not care now, but you will when the very people you slate are turrning to criminal activity, including benefit fraud, just to be properly able support themsleves and their families.

    It always astounds me that you Tory rich pricks never seem to understand what the inevitable back end of wooly thinking like yours is!!!

    And hey, ALL government is ‘social engineering’ of some kind or other, you dumb-ass.

    It must have been SO hard for you under Labour? Did you have to stop using the third car??? Awwwwwwwwww

  7. justthefacts 7
    10 December 2008 at 2:08 pm

    DeeDub

    Wow!, they do say that the left is bitter and twisted, I guess you are living proof.

    I also note that you do not let anything like the truth get in the way of your hatred, crime was down under Labour (http://www.thestandard.org.nz/crime-falls-again/), benefit fraud was small and falling under Labour to say nothing of the large decrease in the number of beneficaires (http://www.thestandard.org.nz/some-facts-on-benefit-numbers/), which wasn’t due to people moving from the unemployment benefit to sicknes or invalids so I fail to see how you can blame the crime decrease and benefit fraud on anybody but Labour.

    I laughed at the “rich prick” comment, as you have no idea who I am or my particular circumstances I find it so typical that you immediately label anybody who does not agree with you as “rich”.

    I have had enough of paying for other peoples kids, all I want is for the govt is to take its dirty hands off my money, let me look after my own and let others look after theirs.

  8. rave 8
    10 December 2008 at 3:00 pm

    Just the facts:

    You are the result of a few thousand years of evolution?
    Even the neanderthals looked after other peoples kids, hell they had other peoples kids.

    And this thread is about Hone Harawira honouring the Treaty. He can’t do that if he sells out not only his kids and grandkids but other peoples kids as well. Tinorangatiratanga means the leader looking after ALL of his/her people, not just “his own”.

    I agree that the MP made a fatal mistake in joining National and ACT. But they can partially redeem themselves by opposing every policy NACT proposes that is an attack on the rights and living standards of ordinary people. Hell they can even break their agreement and go onto the opposition benches.

  9. Steve Pierson 9
    10 December 2008 at 3:12 pm

    rave. to be fair to Just the Facts, I corrected the facts in their last comment and put in references, because their original claims were wrong, and I know they just want the facts.

  10. Lew 10
    10 December 2008 at 3:32 pm

    Steve, it isn’t right to transparently edit others’ comments, even when they’re blatantly bullshit. By all means put your counter-evidence, but don’t make your words look like his.

    L

  11. Steve Pierson 11
    10 December 2008 at 3:45 pm

    I know, Lew, sorry. It’s an idea I’m working on though around just getting the facts in when some claims something completely false. I have a theory it will either make the target troll stop pulling out the false ‘facts’ or ncourage them to leave altogether.

    BTW, you’re not suggesting I do it intransparently, are you?

  12. Lew 12
    10 December 2008 at 3:59 pm

    SP: By `transparently’ I mean `with your words not demarcated from his’, rather than that you simply didn’t mention it (which you did).

    L

  13. justthefacts 13
    10 December 2008 at 4:12 pm

    “Steve”

    Is free speech allowed here or not?

    From what I can see you are very good at telling endless lies and half truths about the Nat’s yet you take exception (in a rather juvenile way it must be said) to the truth being told about Labour.

  14. Steve Pierson 14
    10 December 2008 at 4:18 pm

    just having some fun with you justthefacts. Just letting you know that if you want to write things that are demonstrably untrue you’re going to get shown up. All you have to do is make the argument without the lies. And if you can’t, you should re-examine the argument.

  15. justthefacts 15
    10 December 2008 at 4:34 pm

    “Steve”

    I am more than happy to deal in facts, are you?

  16. NickC 16
    10 December 2008 at 4:36 pm

    Steve why do you assume that the only way for Hone to fulfill his oath and look after his people is through left wing policies?

  17. Steve Pierson 17
    10 December 2008 at 4:54 pm

    NickC. I assume nothing, I make an argument that Hone will be breaking his oath if he votes for those particular policies. You’re welcome to argue counter to that – take the specific instances I’ve refered to and show how voting for them is not against the interests of Maori.

  18. Steve Pierson 18
    10 December 2008 at 4:55 pm

    just. more than happy.

  19. Robinsod 19
    10 December 2008 at 5:05 pm

    The Maori party have just said they won’t support the no-rights bill.

  20. DeeDub 20
    10 December 2008 at 8:49 pm

    justthefacts:

    In my experience most people who talk loudly about THEIR money are usually ‘rich pricks’. It doesn’t mean I think you are wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice, and I know some VERY generous wealthy people – but it does mean I think you’re being a prick. Perhaps ‘selfish prick’ would have been more appropriate? I apologise for getting that wrong.

    And Robinsod, that is heartening news, if somewhat phyrric . . .

  21. Swampy 21
    11 December 2008 at 10:56 am

    Where’s some documentation to back up the claims made by the CTU and others that taxes will be increased for low income workers?

  22. Steve Pierson 22
    11 December 2008 at 10:59 am

    swampy. we’ve done numerous graphs showing this. look in our archives or get off your arse and compare the two tax packages yourself.

    The key thing is that the previous legislation was going to raise the 12.5%/21% threshold from $14K to $20K and National/ACT has cancelled that.

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