Coleader Waititi says party attacked
WELLINGTON: Maori Party coleader Rawiri Waititi has accused the Government and Speaker Trevor Mallard of coordinating an attack on his party in Parliament.
He has now complained to the Speaker, who suggested a former Maori Party president was hindering vac cine rollout plans during a debate on Wednesday, labelling Mr Mallard’s conduct ‘‘grossly inappropriate and unbecoming of your position as Speaker’’.
The spat occurred as Mr Waititi was questioning Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson on whether the vaccine rollout had delivered for Maori.
Covid19 Minister Chris Hipkins jumped into the fray, asking Mr Robertson whether ‘‘having prominent Maori political figures actively discouraging people from being vaccinated help or hinder the vaccination effort’’.
Mr Waititi took offence to this statement, which was a coded reference to former Maori party president Pem Bird, who has been calling for more vaccine choice in his community, rather than just the Pfizer vaccine.
‘‘We’re not following the Crown’s directive. That has been our position for a while,’’ Mr Bird told Maori TV.
‘‘We won’t jump when we’re told to.
‘‘We want the freedom to choose.
‘‘We want a different vaccine.’’
He took issue with Mr Hipkins’ question, claiming it was an ‘‘assertion’’ rather than a fact and therefore out of order.
Responding to Mr Waititi, Mr Mallard outed Mr Bird as the ‘‘political figure’’ Mr Hipkins was talking about.
‘‘There are some things which are assertions, and there are some things which are matters of fact,’’ Mr Mallard said.
‘‘My old propping mate Pem Bird, who I played quite a bit of rugby against in the King Country some time ago, is properly described as a leading political figure and I think the member himself will know history in that way — it’s just a matter of record,’’
Mr Waititi said he was disappointed with the way Mr Bird had been dragged into the debate.
‘‘I take umbrage to the fact that we have mentioned a kaumatua in this room that has taken a position of a professional physician in that community that has created that particular assertion that Maori are encouraging people to get vaccinated.
‘‘I think that’s absolutely wrong.’’
Mr Waititi later wrote to Mr Mallard disputing his ruling, and an earlier decision of Mr Mallard’s, which ruled that Mr Waititi could not assert that the Government had ignored the advice of Maori health experts.
Mr Waititi alleged that this was no more an assertion than the claim made by Mr Hipkins.
They also disputed the fact that assertions of any kind were in fact out of order. — The