Letter to the Editor: Time to come clean

Karikari Peninsula could be the location of New Zealand's biggest tourism development, worth $800m. Photo / file

Dear John Carter,

I appreciate your letter (Mayor John Carter, September 13), in which you gave assurances that ratepayers' money was frugally used in last year's council trip to China. I accept that.

What concerns me is your latter statement that you and Cr Macauley understand our district's social and economic priorities, and know what will work for its people. That's a big call.

You also said it's important that we outline our expectations and vision for the district. To whom were you referring? My fear is that the Chinese investors have a clearer idea of your expectations and vision than the grassroots Far North ratepayers.

Could you please inform the ratepayers, what is the vision for Karikari? What shape will an $800 million investment, requiring an international airport, look like? What social impact will it have? How is it proposed to meet the costs of additional infrastructure min terms of roading, water and sewerage? What opportunities will it provide for employment and local business?

You mentioned also exploring wider opportunities for honey-related products, renewable energy and tourism. What is the council offering investors in return for their capital? Will they simply buy and own key resources and land outright, or will they be restricted to owning shares in a company that could be run and staffed by New Zealanders?

Having been to China several times myself, and observed the process of Chinese financial imperialism around the world, particularly more recently in the Pacific, I fear that the process from their perspective is to buy key resources, staff them with their own labour force and send the profits offshore. Ownership of key resources eventually leads to political influence and control.

Maybe I'm paranoid because of my love for the relatively unspoilt whenua and relaxed lifestyle that we enjoy here in the North. If so, then I call on the council to allay my fears. Come Clean. Treat the ratepayers who elected you with the respect they deserve. Publish and outline the type of investments that you are endeavouring to enter into, so that you can truly test public reaction to your plans.

History tells us that in 1860 Te Teira Manuka indicated his desire to sell the 600-acre Pekapeka block at the mouth of the Waitara River. He had no right to do this, as the land was not his, but jointly owned by the people of Te Atiawa. Governor Gore-Browne accepted the illegal offer, and ignored the wishes of the Maori people, and that decision led to the Taranaki land wars.

They say that history is cyclical. I entreat the council to respect the democratic rights of the people who elected you to represent them and consult public opinion before any life-changing consents are granted.

A FAR NORTH PERSPECTIVE
RD2 Kaitaia