Category: Constitutional Reform
November 6 was a day of reckoning for the United States. It was the day the American people delivered a regime change by electing Donald J Trump as their 47th President. In what has been described as the greatest political comeback of all times, the 78-year-old went through hell to achieve his historic victory.
The battle for democracy is still raging as the Coalition Government defends Parliamentary sovereignty against attack by tribal leaders – along with their allies in the judiciary, the media, academia and State sector - who are using a ‘weaponized’ version of the Treaty to advance Maori sovereignty.
We stand at a constitutional crossroads. Will we allow our Supreme Court to continue its drift towards judicial supremacy? Or will Parliament act to restore the proper balance? The choice is clear. In our democracy, voters - through their elected representatives – should have the final say in shaping our laws, not unaccountable judges. It is time for Parliament to act.
As a result of the law changes, the judiciary is now on trial. Should they continue to prioritise tikanga, then the Marine and Coastal Area Act must be scrapped, and Crown ownership restored under the 2004 Foreshore and Seabed Act. New Zealand simply cannot afford to have activist judges effectively privatise our entire coastline to tribal interests.
The attack has been against every institution which comprises the pillars of our democratic freedoms. The desired outcome is to replace our free and open market-oriented society with increasing state control, and to eliminate any freedoms currently enjoyed which are incompatible with that end.
Biculturalism has been a colossal mistake. A policy introduced to help disadvantaged Maori has fuelled an ambitious takeover attempt by mega-rich tribal corporations aggressively seeking to dominate the Government and control the country.
Across the world, over many millennia, people have learned how best to live together, in a decent society where all share a common feeling of belonging to one larger community – in sovereign countries, unified and living together as equal citizens.
People are not stupid. If they are losing trust in our political institutions ~ and they are ~ it is not because of the evil machinations of the current government ~ which might actually do something to stop the rot, although probably not enough ~ and it is not because of some sinister right wing plot. People are losing trust in our institutions because those institutions no longer deserve our trust.
With Councils showing a belligerent disregard for the Coalition Government, suggestions will not be enough to change the extremist mindset that now dominates local government. A more direct approach will be needed to get the sector back on track: trimming the bureaucracy and operations to ensure council rate increases are no greater than the rate of inflation, instigating debt repayment plans, and undoing the grip of tribal interests - would be a good start.
It has taken centuries for humanity to struggle and claw its way out of a swamp of ignorance and superstition to gain an understanding of the world, of the universe in which we live, and to use that understanding to create better lives for all. Yet, there are those who act as if they wish humanity to reverse course and return to a world of ignorance and superstition. I cannot comprehend how any rational person could honestly desire that to occur.