Bestiality film shown at Police Commissioners’s home

Good God. Yesterday morning I was asking, on Agenda, Police Minister Annette King if she felt by police hierarchy (I wasn’t actually meaning Broad or Pope but the person who mismanaged the stabproof vests project) sometimes let down the frontline officers, and she stressed how much confidence she has in new Commissioner Howard Broad, and then later that day Investigate publishes that Broad hosted a police party at his home in the 1980s, during which a illegal objectionable film involving bestiality was screened.

The Herald on Sunday reports that Broad has admitted that the facts relating to him are right, and is willing to resign. Annette King is refusing to comment and Helen Clark expressed her confidence in Broad.

The issue is not one of morality, but of police having broken the law and covered it up, and whether one can have confidence in Broad to be the new broom to clean up the legacy of the 1980s, when he is now seen as part of it. The Police Commissioner, like Caesar’s wife, needs to be above suspicion.

I suspect the Government will have to accept his resignation. How can anyone else be prosecuted for objectionable publications, if the Police Commissioner is publicly known to have broken the same law. At a minimum some sort of independent inquiry would be needed into what happened. At present the Government will just be thinking how much they hate Ian Wishart, and their responses will instinctively be to not do anything which may make Wishart seem a “winner”, but given time and if necessary some questioning in Parliament, they will soon realise there are bigger questions at stake.

Investigate, according to their cover, are also alleging involvement of some current and former politicians in related issues. I have not read Investigate, so can’t comment on what is or is not alleged but understand from Ian Wishart’s blog there will be a press release this afternoon. So the only uncontested fact at this stage is that a bestiality video was shown at Broad’s home. This doesn’t necessarily mean all allegations are true. Time will tell.