Whaitiri report says arm grab ‘probable’
The investigation into the Meka Whaitiri incident with a staffer finds it ‘‘probable’’ that Whaitiri grabbed a staff member but not probable that she dragged her from the room.
The report from the investigation into the incident, which saw the Labour MP lose her ministerial portfolios, was released yesterday.
Whaitiri and her lawyer dispute the allegations of physical contact and were concerned with a draft version of the report, even alleging a friend of the staffer had ‘‘blackmailed’’ the prime minister.
Whaitiri was suspended from being a minister in late August while the incident was investigated.
It was alleged Whaitiri shouted at and manhandled the press secretary after an event in Gisborne in late August, where Whaitiri missed an opportunity to stand with the prime minister at a media standup.
The staffer told the investigation that Whaitiri ‘‘grabbed me by the arm and pulled me outside and said she needed to talk to me’’.
Whaitiri told the investigation she had not touched the staffer.
‘‘I did not touch [the employee]. ‘‘I didn’t yank at [the employee]. ‘‘I didn’t pinch at [the employee]. ‘‘I just don’t touch staff,’’ Whaitiri said.
A photo of a bruise on the employee’s arm was given to the investigation as evidence.
Barrister David Patten, who carried out the investigation, said that on the balance of probabilities Whaitiri had grabbed the staffer.
‘‘After giving careful consideration to this matter, it is my view that the explanation provided to me by employee A is a more probable explanation as to what happened than the explanation provided to me by the minister.
‘‘That is, rather than the encounter between the two of them in the foyer being a face-to-face encounter as described to me by the minister, the minister in fact approached employee A from slightly behind and grabbed employee A by the arm,’’ Patten wrote. The investigation by the Department of Internal Affairs was completed in late September.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern fired Whaitiri as a minister upon seeing the report in September, saying that while Whaitiri disputed aspects of the incident there was no question an incident had taken place, and she had subsequently lost confidence in her.
Ardern said a version of that report would be made public, with some details removed to respect privacy. That is the report released yesterday.
Whaitiri’s lawyer, Sally McKechnie, wrote to Internal Affairs saying the conclusions reached in the draft report were ‘‘not sound or sustainable’’.
McKechnie noted the employee did not ‘‘initiate’’ the complaints process. It was established by Ministerial Services after a ‘‘threatening email’’ was sent to the prime minister by a friend of the staffer’s who had heard about the incident from the staffer, containing details inconsistent with the employee’s later recollection. Patten accepted the email used ‘‘strong language’’ but said it not did impact the employee’s credibility as she had not written it.
‘‘In my view, the fact that employee A’s employer initiated the investigation adds to the credibility of employee A in the sense that s/he did not return to Wellington from Gisborne seeking to somehow punish the minister,’’ he wrote.
Another version of the report was leaked to the NZ Herald recently. That leak is being investigated by Internal Affairs.
Whaitiri was a minister outside of Cabinet with responsibility for customs and associate agriculture, local government, and Crown/ Ma¯ ori relations.
Kris Faafoi retains the role of customs minister while her associate portfolios will sit with the lead ministers of each portfolio.