The Taxpayers’ Union did the country a major service in January when it pointed out that $4 million of taxpayers’ money was spent on a nonsensical “science” project whereby “whale music” and traditional Māori prayer (karakia) was played to kauri trees to help cure the trees of the dieback disease.
The genesis of this crackpot theory is that in an earlier life whales and kauri trees were brothers and therefore music from the whale could sooth the sickness in the kauri tree and cure it.
Yes, there are actually adults in this so-called sophisticated and modern nation who believe in that kind of spiritual claptrap.
But it was worse than that.
At the centre of this story is Melanie Mark-Shadbolt. Describing herself as an “environmental sociologist” she was until recently a Deputy Secretary at the Ministry for the Environment.
She is currently a director of New Zealand’s Biological Heritage National Science Challenge. That organisation allocated the four million taxpayer-funded dollars, originating from the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) for the playing of whale music to an outfit named Te Tira Whakamataki – a company of which Melanie Mark-Shadbolt just happens to be the chief executive!
None of these facts are disputed.
The Taxpayers’ Union has taken Ms Mark-Shadbolt at her word and said that she recused herself from making the decision to appoint her own company to play the whale music and take the four million dollars.
But that’s not enough for Ms Mark-Shadbolt. She believes that by simply pointing out the facts of this story the Taxpayers’ Union is guilty of defamation.
Which by any stretch of the imagination, is surely a step way too far.
This journalist always believed in the mantra “the truth cannot be sued.”
Melanie Mark-Shadbolt, through her lawyers, has asked the TPU to take down the original post about the story and her connections to it. They also want the TPU to purge the emails sent to their database subscribers so that all trace of the story will just disappear.
Otherwise Ms Mark-Shadbolt’s lawyers say they will sue the TPU and its Executive Director Jordan Williams for a sum in excess of $225,000.
On the surface it seems an unlikely claim because no facts are or can be disputed. The TPU at no stage said Ms Mark-Shadbolt used her position at the Science Challenge to benefit Te Tira Whakamataki. It went even further and asked her for an interview on the subject, and then amended the TPU website story to clarify that Ms Mark-Shadbolt recused herself from the decision to award money to her own company.
Here's another fact or two: there are only two directors of the Biological Heritage National Science Challenge – Melanie Mark-Shadbolt and Daniel Patrick. There is a (presumably) full time staff under their direction. And as for Te Tira Whakamataki, Ms Mark-Shadbolt is the CEO, and listed as one of three “co-founders and trustees.”
There is an old saying that perception is reality. But if Ms Mark-Shadbolt, daughter of a former cabinet minister, says she had nothing to do with the awarding of a contract to her company then we must accept her word.
For her then to issue legal proceedings against some facts being published might just be a new low in defamation cases in New Zealand.
The TPU is fighting furiously to see this challenge off and is asking its members to financially contribute to the fight. But as Jordan Williams points out, defending a High Court claim will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and frankly with some of the decisions coming from our judicial system in recent times, could you really trust the High Court to worry about little things like facts?
(Remember the High Court judge who obviously failed to properly read the Marine and Coastal Area [Takutai Moana] Act of 2011 and invented the oxymoronic concept of “shared exclusivity.” That is linguistically impossible!)
The TPU believes this case is really about trying to shut the organisation down financially and force them out of existence. Just who is funding Ms Mark-Shadbolt is unknown but she does list descent from six iwi, many of whom have considerable resources based on Treaty settlements. Maybe one of those iwi or people associated with them are funding the case.
Either way, it’s an important case for this country. If you can defame someone by merely pointing out some inconvenient facts then we have issues far more serious than we thought.
NB: This story has yet to appear in a mainstream media outlet. Isn’t the farcical waste of four million taxpayer dollars and its questionable provenance a worthwhile news story? Perhaps the New Zealand Herald under new ownership might be interested !
Peter Williams was a writer and broadcaster for half a century. Now watching from the sidelines. Peter blogs regularly on Peter’s Substack - where this article was sourced.
But it was worse than that.
At the centre of this story is Melanie Mark-Shadbolt. Describing herself as an “environmental sociologist” she was until recently a Deputy Secretary at the Ministry for the Environment.
She is currently a director of New Zealand’s Biological Heritage National Science Challenge. That organisation allocated the four million taxpayer-funded dollars, originating from the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) for the playing of whale music to an outfit named Te Tira Whakamataki – a company of which Melanie Mark-Shadbolt just happens to be the chief executive!
None of these facts are disputed.
The Taxpayers’ Union has taken Ms Mark-Shadbolt at her word and said that she recused herself from making the decision to appoint her own company to play the whale music and take the four million dollars.
But that’s not enough for Ms Mark-Shadbolt. She believes that by simply pointing out the facts of this story the Taxpayers’ Union is guilty of defamation.
Which by any stretch of the imagination, is surely a step way too far.
This journalist always believed in the mantra “the truth cannot be sued.”
Melanie Mark-Shadbolt, through her lawyers, has asked the TPU to take down the original post about the story and her connections to it. They also want the TPU to purge the emails sent to their database subscribers so that all trace of the story will just disappear.
Otherwise Ms Mark-Shadbolt’s lawyers say they will sue the TPU and its Executive Director Jordan Williams for a sum in excess of $225,000.
On the surface it seems an unlikely claim because no facts are or can be disputed. The TPU at no stage said Ms Mark-Shadbolt used her position at the Science Challenge to benefit Te Tira Whakamataki. It went even further and asked her for an interview on the subject, and then amended the TPU website story to clarify that Ms Mark-Shadbolt recused herself from the decision to award money to her own company.
Here's another fact or two: there are only two directors of the Biological Heritage National Science Challenge – Melanie Mark-Shadbolt and Daniel Patrick. There is a (presumably) full time staff under their direction. And as for Te Tira Whakamataki, Ms Mark-Shadbolt is the CEO, and listed as one of three “co-founders and trustees.”
There is an old saying that perception is reality. But if Ms Mark-Shadbolt, daughter of a former cabinet minister, says she had nothing to do with the awarding of a contract to her company then we must accept her word.
For her then to issue legal proceedings against some facts being published might just be a new low in defamation cases in New Zealand.
The TPU is fighting furiously to see this challenge off and is asking its members to financially contribute to the fight. But as Jordan Williams points out, defending a High Court claim will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and frankly with some of the decisions coming from our judicial system in recent times, could you really trust the High Court to worry about little things like facts?
(Remember the High Court judge who obviously failed to properly read the Marine and Coastal Area [Takutai Moana] Act of 2011 and invented the oxymoronic concept of “shared exclusivity.” That is linguistically impossible!)
The TPU believes this case is really about trying to shut the organisation down financially and force them out of existence. Just who is funding Ms Mark-Shadbolt is unknown but she does list descent from six iwi, many of whom have considerable resources based on Treaty settlements. Maybe one of those iwi or people associated with them are funding the case.
Either way, it’s an important case for this country. If you can defame someone by merely pointing out some inconvenient facts then we have issues far more serious than we thought.
NB: This story has yet to appear in a mainstream media outlet. Isn’t the farcical waste of four million taxpayer dollars and its questionable provenance a worthwhile news story? Perhaps the New Zealand Herald under new ownership might be interested !
Peter Williams was a writer and broadcaster for half a century. Now watching from the sidelines. Peter blogs regularly on Peter’s Substack - where this article was sourced.
10 comments:
The sadder part is that there is no accountability to the outcome expressed.....did the whale song cure the trees?
Well I am sure we all know the answer is not in anyway shape or form but no one will be asked any inconvenient questions about the absurdity.
Perhaps she is being funded by Stuff, who have already received funding from NZonAir to make a documentary on how the whales saved to trees. With M-S having a starring role, they need her to look squeaky clean.
Apart from the farcical nature of the project, since this is (or rather ...was) public money, can we have an accounting of how the money was spent, what equipment was used, how many people were involved, how many trees were fortunate enough to receive the treatment, and most importantly, have they all made a full recovery?
With such willingness to spend up large to crush those revealing inconvenient facts, it is little wonder the maori power of cancellation is so powerful and all invasive.
I would love our coalition government to come to the realisation that in allowing all these Treaty claims to be paid out, mainly against dubious rationales (Read Robinson "Who really broke the Treaty"), iwi have been delivered a massive "war chest" of monies with which to exert effective control over all manner of entities. There is nothing like arming those who would do you no good with your own cash (sorry taxpayers hard earned!). Small wonder we have so much indoctrination being sponsored/allowed to occur. Who knows what money is behind the propping up of Stuff, entities like Group M seeking to control who gets advertising dollars? Our coalition would do well to do a bit of intelligence gathering on just who/what is financing the push against them and all the sensible ones amongst us to right our Country. People like Goldsmith and Finlayson need to be reined in as it is they and their ilk who are killing NZ through their misguided actions.
I disagee Peter , yes Jordan has lost some sleep but it is NOT an important case for this country . Just an annoyance that needs a substantial counterclaim and serious Cease and Dssist reply .
I have contributed to the fighting fund. How ironic that she has taken our money and now we have to pay to fight her off grabbing some more. I am so over the jolly Maori f'n racists and their grifting grasping crap. National is going down the gurgler for not stopping this. MC
WOW !!!
This is really scary.
We are now seeing the woke separatists bringing out their heavy artillery.
And of course, the FSU would be one of the number one targets for the separatist elites to want to silence.
Good grief, and since their trough is endless thanks to us taxpayers, we won’t be able to compete. Slippery slide to the bottom. And yet just this morning on the way to work, one of their people was digging through a rubbish bin and scored a McDonald’s bag with a half eaten burger for breakfast. Priorities in the wrong place lady. Sick of these brown Europeans who are runiers of everything they touch, they are all tainted with the same brush.
I see that Melanie Mark-Shadbolt is described in the whale music company, Te Tira Whakamataki's website as a specialist in mātauranga Māori, although she has no pure science qualifications. She is qualified as a political scientist.
The organization is a charity, so doesn't pay tax, but on the payroll is a Marcus-Rongowhitiao Shadbolt and a Hayley Shadbolt. None of this family seems to have links to Kauri trees, whales or even the part of NZ where these Kauri trees grow. They'refrom the East Coast and Bay of Plenty. But who needs knowledge when it comes to taxpayer funding?
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