RICHARD PREBBLE: Grievance Politics
It will outrage supporters of Te Pāti Māori and New Zealand First, but their parties are remarkably similar.
Both are grievance parties.
Both are led by politicians who specialise in outrage.
Both need someone to blame. New Zealand First targets migrants, particularly Indians. Te Pāti Māori blames non-Māori.
Both make extravagant promises.
New Zealand First promises to buy back the BNZ, establish a $100 billion infrastructure fund, increase defense spending to 3% of GDP and give every newborn citizen $1,000 in KiwiSaver.
Te Pāti Māori promises a $3.1 billion food programme, a billion-dollar energy fund, $100 million to establish Māori-owned supermarkets, 2,000 houses on Māori land and half of all new social housing for Māori.
Neither has presented a fiscal plan to show how its policies are even remotely possible.
Both specialise in attacking the establishment while seeking the power to become part of it.
New Zealand First’s reversals are spectacular.
Peters made Jacinda Ardern Prime Minister. He served in the government that introduced compulsory vaccination and now courts the anti-vaccine vote. He supported the ban on new offshore oil and gas exploration and now champions exploration.
While today attacking Labour, Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi was in 2014 Labour’s candidate for Waiariki.
What attracts their supporters is not a coherent programme of government but the politics of grievance: the conviction that someone else is responsible for their misfortunes.
But the most remarkable similarity is that both parties are doing more electoral damage to their coalition partners than to themselves.
Winston Peters’ racist attack on a Chinese-born MP appears to have cost him little support. But it damaged Christopher Luxon.
Te Pāti Māori’s courting the gangs may not have cost the party votes. It may have cost Chris Hipkins any chance of becoming Prime Minister.
Richard Prebble is a former Minister and ACT Party leader
I don’t care if Winston is full of hot air or not, I want rampant immigration stopped as of yesterday and I want NZ in line with pretty much all similar countries - votes for Citizens only. If he’s the only politician willing to voice that I’ll support him. I certainly would rather slit my own throat than vote for a party that backed the horrendous Indian FTA. To be called a waster by my own country’s PM is a leap too far and one I will never ever forgive or forget
If only parties would talk ‘self responsibility’ instead of bribery promises harvested from fantastical money trees in my back yard!
Peter's embarasses himself when ever he opens his yap. Voters are distained for his persuit of power.
I take it you don't particularly like Winston, Richard.
‘“The conviction that someone else is responsible for their misfortunes “ , is a near perfect summary of Te Parti Maori’s stance on just about everything . Maori simply do not accept ‘personal responsibility’ for themselves . “Grievance” and “blame” (for maximum possible compensation achievable) is their chosen way to ‘success’.
Winston / NZ First are classic opportunists, jumping on popular bandwagons either to garner votes or to avoid losing them —- all with a view to gaining Winston the most possible ‘personal power’ he can manoeuvre .
Hugh Perrett