Elaine Naidu Franz has withdrawn as an Act Party candidate after historic comments about vaccine mandates came to light. Photo / Supplied
Elaine Naidu Franz has withdrawn as an Act Party candidate after historic comments about vaccine mandates came to light. Photo / Supplied
EDITORIAL
Over the past fortnight, we have been treated to no fewer than 17 valedictory speeches from departing Members of Parliament.
Their words remind us of the commitment it takes to represent the people or party during tumultuous times. Many have referenced the pressures on politicians, and some of thepassions that brought them into the field in the first place. The diversity of the departing MPs is a reminder of the many-faceted cultures of Aotearoa today.
Some, however, remind us of disappointing decisions made during their terms in office.
As this 53rd Parliament draws to a close, there are questions brewing over the calibre of candidates coming through the parties’ selection process.
Rod Emmerson's view in July of Labour's travails with its misbehaving MPs.
This week, Act candidate Elaine Naidu Franz resigned after her historical comments comparing Covid-19 vaccine mandates to Nazi concentration camps came to light. Another Act candidate, Darren Gilchrist, apologised and renounced online comments that suggested drownings were connected to the effect of the vaccine. Gilchrist has been kept on as a candidate.
Another former candidate, Anto Coates, left the party for personal reasons, according to leader David Seymour. But Coates had also produced parody songs about former prime minister Jacinda Ardern and her actions during the pandemic, including a lyric about her “throwing you in the gulag” – a reference to the system of camps and prisons that housed political prisoners and criminals in the Soviet Union.
Act’s vetting process reportedly includes asking candidates to check whether anything they’d done or said in the past could embarrass the party. It would appear some candidates believe this is a rhetorical question.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, responding to a question from Seymour in the House this past week, claimed Act was being “propped up by a bunch of anti-vaxxers”.
Labour, of course, has had its share of embarrassments.
Labour’s Jan Tinetti was subject to scrutiny from Parliament’s privileges committee over her behaviour. In her role as education minister, she was questioned by the Opposition about the timing of a release of school attendance data. The committee found her obfuscations to be evidence of a “sustained and erroneous judgment” and displayed a “high degree of negligence”.
Kiri Allan, you may recall, resigned after being arrested and charged over a car crash, and faced accusations related to concerns about her treatment of officials. From Gaurav Sharma to Stuart Nash and Michael Wood, Labour has struggled to demonstrate sturdy representation.
Woefully, poor examples can be found on all sides of the House. National MP Tim van de Molen has recently been stripped of all portfolios after he was found to have acted in contempt of Parliament for “acting in a threatening manner” towards Labour MP Shanan Halbert. Previously, party president Sylvia Wood admitted Tauranga by-election candidate Sam Uffindell’s history as a schoolboy bully should have been disclosed to voters.
NZ First candidate Kirsten Murfitt has reportedly made online claims that the Covid vaccine contained nanotechnology and that all terrorist attacks since 9/11 were false flag operations. Another candidate, Janina Massee, referred to the vaccine campaign as “being led to the slaughter like so many to the gas chambers”.
The heavy toll on the families of MPs and the sometimes “toxic” nature of Parliament and the media environment were mentioned by three of Labour’s departing politicians in their final speeches. There is little doubt the environment is a tough one. This is no place to be sending flakes.
MPs are representatives of the country. Could it be that these members and their poor decisions are representative of who we are? Let’s hope not.
And let’s hope for the best candidates and the best possible representatives selected on October 14. This country has important challenges and needs the foremost people we can find.
