Stop moaning and move on, Turia tells Labour's Jones

Shane Jones

The Maori Party has accused Labour MP Shane Jones of being a pessimist who is not interested in progress.

"Stop moaning, shift the focus from grievances and defeat to one of confidence and optimism," said co-leader Tariana Turia after Mr Jones said her party's behaviour had stigmatised the Maori seats in Parliament.

Their disagreement is over the changes in the number of people on the Maori electoral roll after the option exercise ended last week.

There are an additional 14,914 on the Maori roll, which the Maori Party hopes will be enough to create another Maori seat and bring the total from seven to eight.

Mr Jones said he did not think that would happen and pointed out that 7294 voters had switched from the Maori roll to the general roll.

"I think the Maori seats are being stigmatised by the negativity and the boastfulness of Tariana and co, who foolishly believe just because they're in Parliament all the Maori are going to blindly follow them," he said.

Mrs Turia said he should stop being a pessimist.

"I urge him to stop trotting out Labour's carefully scripted lines and start thinking for himself - that is what we stand for, to take the power to think for ourselves," she said.

"In reality we are moving upwards and onwards ... let us look to each other to do all that we can to restore whanau well-being to a position of national pride."

- NZPA