Party leader Rawiri Waititi stated, “It’s well past time that Maori was restored to its rightful place as the first and official language of this country. We are a Polynesian country, we are Aotearoa.
“Aotearoa is a name that will unify our country rather than divide it,” Waititi said. “Others are trying to use it as a divisive tool, but this is an inclusive tool, where our ancestors consented to us all living on this land together.”
Further, Waititi claims, “Tangata whenua are sick to death of our ancestral names being mangled, bastardised, and ignored. It’s the 21st century, this must change.”
“It is the duty of the Crown to do all that it can to restore the status of our language. That means it needs to be accessible in the most obvious of places; on our televisions, on our radio stations, on road signs, maps and official advertising, and in our education system.”
But hold on Rawiri, the modern cities and towns of New Zealand do not owe their existence in any way to Maori culture.
