We have been warned for some time now that Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements (MWRs) are undermining local democracy and would be sped up by captured councils and local iwi before the government passes its Resource Management Act (RMA) reforms.
As I write, the Far North District Council is rushing through more Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements with multiple iwi (and even hapū). They are giving this work priority and seeking to avoid public consultation. They are negotiating with five iwi and one hapū. The RMA specifically talks about iwi authorities; it doesn’t mention hapū.
What’s worse, brave whistleblower Councillor Davina Smolders has highlighted that the Far North MWR agreement explicitly cedes sovereignty to iwi!
In clause '2.0 Relationship to He Whakaputanga’, the text states:
What’s worse, brave whistleblower Councillor Davina Smolders has highlighted that the Far North MWR agreement explicitly cedes sovereignty to iwi!
In clause '2.0 Relationship to He Whakaputanga’, the text states:
"The Parties recognise the significance for Te Rünanga-A-Iwi-Õ-Ngāpuhi of He Whakaputanga o Te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni as a declaration of the status of Mãori as the sovereign people of Aotearoa/ New Zealand”
People need to wake up! Local councils should not be ceding our nation’s sovereignty to anyone. It is a massive constitutional matter. I'm pretty sure it is called “treason”, actually.
Enough is enough.
The Kiwi way might be to be easygoing and chilled out, but there are times when that isn’t going to cut it. We MUST take action now.
On top of this, we understand they are pushing this approach out to iwi across the country – urging them to get these agreements in place as fast as possible and before any reform to the RMA occurs.
So, if they get these agreements in place now, then unless the Government specifically revokes them via RMA reform, these agreements remain intact and virtually impossible to undo.
This is coming to a council near you, whether you like it or not. We can halt this unconstitutional brazen power grab, but only if we work together. We have the ability to make the noise required to bring attention to this, but we need the support of people like you to fund the means to do so.
Get behind the resistance.
Minister Chris Bishop needs to act, but he won't unless we create the necessary pressure. He needs to amend his RMA replacement Bills to put an end to Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements. He will argue that the new laws will stop new MWR agreements, but this misses the point – iwi and captured councils are racing to get these agreements in place before the law changes.
The Minister needs to make it clear now that these agreements will not stand, no matter when they are signed. Elected power sits with elected officials. No one else.
And Minister Simon Watts also needs to act, as the Minister for Local Government, to stop power moving from the elected to the unelected.
These agreements are taking power away from locals and elected representatives and entrenching more control into iwi. This is the reason why various iwi across the country, and weak councils, are making obtaining these agreements a priority and not roads, footpaths, water treatment.
They want more control in the hand of unelected iwi.
Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements are co-governance and preferential treatment based on race.
As Davina Smolders says, forget co-governance, this is straight-up iwi governance.
These agreements, being implemented across the country, are actively transferring power from elected councils to iwi.
In the Far North, these MWR agreements are moving through a council committee that is full of unelected representatives from the very iwi and hapū negotiating the agreements!
Talk about a massive conflict of interest.
We’re also hearing that the Far North District Council is trying to create a MWR with the iwi leaders' collective of the region – that is, a council of local iwi leaders and not just the individual iwi. It is agreement on top of agreement, binding control on top of binding control, and all stripping power and influence away from elected councillors.
What is happening in the Far North and in other parts of the country is the deliberate replacement of democracy with unelected iwi elites who get special seats at the table, influence over public assets, planning powers, and ongoing ratepayer-funded “resourcing” — all while ordinary Kiwis are shut out of the conversation.
They’re using public money.
They’re committing future councils and ratepayers to long-term obligations. No consultation. No genuine debate.
Graham posts regularly on facebook and is a staunch supporter of 'one law for all'
They want more control in the hand of unelected iwi.
Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements are co-governance and preferential treatment based on race.
As Davina Smolders says, forget co-governance, this is straight-up iwi governance.
These agreements, being implemented across the country, are actively transferring power from elected councils to iwi.
In the Far North, these MWR agreements are moving through a council committee that is full of unelected representatives from the very iwi and hapū negotiating the agreements!
Talk about a massive conflict of interest.
We’re also hearing that the Far North District Council is trying to create a MWR with the iwi leaders' collective of the region – that is, a council of local iwi leaders and not just the individual iwi. It is agreement on top of agreement, binding control on top of binding control, and all stripping power and influence away from elected councillors.
What is happening in the Far North and in other parts of the country is the deliberate replacement of democracy with unelected iwi elites who get special seats at the table, influence over public assets, planning powers, and ongoing ratepayer-funded “resourcing” — all while ordinary Kiwis are shut out of the conversation.
They’re using public money.
They’re committing future councils and ratepayers to long-term obligations. No consultation. No genuine debate.
Graham posts regularly on facebook and is a staunch supporter of 'one law for all'
23 comments:
Any reaction from Bishop or Watts as yet? Many have written to them on this issue.
This just makes my blood boil.
Im so angry with the govt, they have no right to let this happen.
This has to stop.
“People need to wake up” states Graham Carter. He’s right but what can an angry public do? Parliament has a well known reputation for doing absolutely nothing.
How do we take matters into our own hands may I ask? March on parliament? I remember this being tried some years ago and failed. The entire parliamentary establishment cowered inside the Beehive until the gardens were cleared by their Stasi thugs.
Whistle blowers are singled out and crushed by the full weight of the law for simply demonstrating what politicians don’t have…. courage.
Some commentators keep using the word Treason. I don’t think it means what they think it means.
I don’t know how they got so badly educated, they can’t blame Ardern for their own failings on this one.
Where are the judiciary in all of this? Surely it is unlawful if not illegal. If the Treaty were being abused as much as democracy is here, the judiciary would be all over it like a rash. That they are not demonstrates their bias.
Wakey wakey National!
Re: Anon 834
The Oxford defines treason as "the crime of doing something that could cause danger to your country, such as helping its enemies during a war." Note the "such as" which means that aiding enemies is not necessarily involved. We have here the undermining of the instruments of governance that underpin NZ's sovereignty which strikes me as qualifying for the label.
The Shorter Oxford says for treason, "2 Law. a violation by a subject of allegiance to the sovereign or to the State, esp. by attempting or plotting to kill or overthrow the Government."
So, again, where is the judiciary? If they can find 'partnership' in the Treaty, they could find treason in the FNDC (organized political community = state) and its consequences.
National's decision to focus on the economy to the exclusion of all else speaks volumes for its intentions. Who is pulling their strings?
I completely agree with Barend, this can be considered treason because the enemy in this case is within! Note - a tranche of absolute idiots removed sedition from the NZ statutes - Sedition was officially removed from New Zealand statutes on January 1, 2008.The abolition was enacted by the Crimes (Repeal of Seditious Offences) Amendment Act 2007, which passed in October 2007 and officially abolished sections 81 to 85 of the Crimes Act 1961. Only NZ First had the good sense to oppose this folly.
Many of us are awake, and have written to Bishop, Luxon, Watts and either got the boilerplate response, or nothing.
They act , or fail to act with impunity.
Nothing about this in the media.
We do need to march on Parliament to make our voices heard.
This is treason.
And they expect us to vote them back into power again ???
Look at the King's Honours List today, even more awards to people doing good things for Maori.
Not a single award to anyone for services to Europeans only.
Again, the white ants in government offices are giving rewards on a race basis.
This article implies that new Mana Whakahono ā Rohe agreements (MWRs) will be stopped when the government passes its Resource Management Act (RMA) reforms.
The present coalition has been in power for two and a half years; they should have made the RMA reforms in the first year.
Is this another of those rorts where they go: 'Oh, if you want us to actually do it, you will need to vote us in for another term'?
Otherwise, why do they leave all of this stuff until the last year? Do they actually want Maori sovereignty?
There must be lots of lower level MPs who know what is going on with the aspirations of Luxon, Watts et al, who are bloody angry that they have been duped into supporting the racist attitudes of their leaders.
Absolutely, Luxon knows what is going on with the regional and local Councils with the unelected Maori being given the supreme power of veto.
Why is he doing this to us ?
I don't understand why he is letting this happen ?
There he is on ANZAC Day looking and sounding very pious, meanwhile he is knowingly allowing the enemy within to destroy NZ.
Luxon has become a dismal failure, and must be not be re-elected.
Democracy must be restored by the lower level MPs - please stand up to the bullies at the top.
This exact same opinion piece (albeit with a different title) is on the Brash & Mitchell blogspot, credited to Elliot Ikilei. Whose opinion is it?
We live in the middle of what's happening in the far North District Council area. I've contacted a councillor whose supposed to be our representative. I've asked him if he's complicit with what's going on currently..to no avail, not even the is decency of a a reply. I'm not surprised because Davina Smolders is the only one who's taking a stand on our behalf... Shes is one out of 6 elected councillors who is standing up for us! We believe in the near future there will be civil unrest! We're not the only ones who feel this! This has been building up for over 50 years and now they've got people in the right position to enable a takeover.
Many similar opinions blame the Government to varying degrees of vitriol and annoyance .
A voice of sanity is with Hon David Seymour where through his direct video from Parliament "on the tiles" media question and answer leaves no doubt about his policy and is greater than NZ First who mostly rely on You Tube which can be edited.
National appears to rely on written media which is completely irrelevant through poor journalism and failure to be rid of the bureaucracy overload who intimidate policy direction.
NZ voters deserve to have the policy promises from last election debated and past into law before the 3 year election term closes .
Nothing else is acceptable.
If we didn’t recognise that in the early part of this century treason and evil intent (or something very like it) was occurring at the peak of our political tree, then from 2020 on it should have been stunningly obvious. Perhaps there are two options: 1. Our ‘leaders’ are so contemptuous of the rest of us, and therefore so ignorant of our simple desires, that they really do think they are doing the right things; or 2. They know damn’ well what we want and delight in giving us the fingers anyway.
I wonder how long it will be before we the great unwashed hit ‘control-delete’ on their very comfortable/profitable operating system?
Barend only making my point with another misunderstanding of the definition of Treason. Orwell says fascists redefine words to keep the populace in line. Misuse by this handful of confused commentators isn’t going to change what words mean, you don’t need to be a linguist to see that!
National (relying votes from ACT and NZ First) is not actually demonstrating much, if any, commitment to democracy. Most legislation has separatist elements and the recent NZ-India Trade Deal affirms UNDRIP (aka He Puapua). Third world chaos - here we come.
What words mean, Anon 351, is what common usage says they mean. In France, an office attached to the Ministry of Culture tells people what words mean. The English tradition is for usage to lead the way.
Barend making my point yet again! Common usage definition of Treason is nothing to do with what this article is about. It is one thing to draw a long bow, it is another to double down even when you’re proven wrong, my learned friend. Love the dialog though and loving being here in the waka, paddling with you.
OK, Anon 757, I concede - the article and subsequent discussion are about an undefined concept that everyone takes to mean something else. Now that's what I call a recipe for true, in-depth communication........ NOT.
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