New year celebrated at popular events

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

A somewhat forgettable 2023 ended on a high note for this district with thousands of people celebrating the new year at two hugely popular events — the final night of Rhythm & Vines on New Year’s Eve and Findlay’s Fire in the Sky fireworks display on January 1. It is now time to look at the new year with some trepidation.

While it was disappointing to see so many young drivers test positive for alcohol when leaving on the morning of the 1st, 45 in total, the 21st anniversary R&V generally provided a positive ethos for Gisborne city.

That evening a very different event, the annual fireworks display that saw the riverbank packed with thousands, was an unmitigated success. The sponsorship Walter Findlay Ltd has given to this event cannot be too highly praised. It is truly the most bang for a buck that you could ever see.

The summer holiday period is extending its positive vibe right through to the most widespread parts of this district, with hundreds of family gatherings taking place.

Looking ahead to 2024, however, there are some clouds on the horizon.

Two brutal wars continue in Gaza and Ukraine, with no immediate signs of a possible peace in either.

Closer to home this district continues to suffer badly from the effects of Cyclone Gabrielle and multiple other storms in what was a record wet year. Repairing battered roading is going to take a lot of time and the projected rate rise of possibly as much as 11 percent for each of the next three years, to help fund the recovery, is very concerning.

Surely we are leaving the string of severe weather events behind us in 2023; any more major storms would compound an already dire situation.

You don’t have to be Nostradamus to predict a year of political turmoil both here and abroad.

The new tripartite coalition Government, the first of its kind, has probably picked the low-hanging fruit with the changes it has quickly made and now has to deal with the hard things.

On this topic, a rare national hui called by Maori King Tūheitia later this month, as well as Waitangi Day in February, could see Māori uniting in a way not seen since the foreshore and seabed dispute.

Then there is the small matter of the US Presidential election in November. Like it or not, everyone in the world is affected by this — with many fearful of a return by Donald Trump.

Still, it is always good to have something to look forward to and for many that will be the Summer Olympic Games in Paris in July — the sixth time France has hosted a Summer or Winter Olympics.

So goodbye 2023, bring it on 2024 — we are hoping you don’t have too many surprises in store for us.