Maori Wards

The Editor,
Bay of Plenty Times,
21st Jan 2018
 
Dear Sir,
It is not a walk in the park to put one’s name for election to a Council, and many good people have stood and not made it, women included, and we are 51% of the population.
I know every man and woman of any ethnicity is my equal, and I know that if we have Maori Ward or Wards it is telling Maori they are not good enough and not electable. This is a nonsense as we have had Maori representatives in the past and we will again in the future. Just as we have had more really capable women on Western Bay and at the moment we only have one. So, it is a dreadful lie to pretend that Maori are not good enough. The writer obviously does not know our community very well. Imagine locking Maori voters into one or two wards stretching over the extraordinarily vast distances and stopping them from voting for other positions. There are 4 councillors representing the Kaimai Ward, 3 representing Katikati Waihi Beach ward, and 4 representing Te Puke Maketu. No way can the system be designed to keep Maori out and separate. We are all equal.
Margaret Murray-Benge
Bethlehem