Labour on being a Councillor and an MP

Over the last year Labour have made numerous attacks on National MP Pesata Sam Lotu-Iiga as was on the Auckland City Council when he got elected to Parliament, and continued doing both jobs until recently.

Now personally I don’t regard being a Councillor as a full-time job. In fact one of the problems in local government is that it has become a full-time job for too many Councillors. But there can be no doubt at all that being Mayor is a full-time job, especially Mayor of the second largest city in New Zealand.

So what did Labour MPs say about being a Councillor and an MP:

People of the Tamaki Maungakiekie deserve better representation than a sometime City Councillor, says locally based Labour MP Carol Beaumont

“The people of Maungakiekie deserve a fulltime MP to represent their views; likewise the people of the Tamaki Maungakiekie ward of the Auckland City Council deserve a fulltime City Councillor – at the moment they are being short-changed by Peseta Sam Lotu-Iiga.

Can’t be clearer than that. Labour said doing Councillor and MP was wrong.

So why are they all so enthusiastically backing Jim Anderton to be a Mayor, an MP and a party leader? Once again they just come across as a hypcritical bunch of snake oil salepersons.

Auckland based Labour MP Carmel Sepuloni said: “ensuring Pacific Island people are well represented in local Government is an important issue. Mr Lotu-Iiga should have stood aside immediately after becoming an MP so as to allow someone better placed to fulfil the responsibilities of the role – he’s doing a disservice to the public by doing the two jobs.

That’s two Labour MPs saying you can’t do both.

Associate Pacific Island Spokesperson Su’a William Sio, who is a former Manukau City Councillor, said when he entered Parliament midway through 2008 he resigned from the council immediately because it was impossible to do justice to both jobs.

And a third Labour MP. So where are their voices now? Why has a journalist not gone to those MPs and asked them if they agree that Jim Anderton can not be a Mayor and an MP?

“Labour is also concerned that National is allowing Maungakiekie MP Pesata Sam Lotu-liga to participate in debate on, and vote on, this issue. He is an Auckland City Councillor and clearly has a conflict of interest. It’s bad enough that he’s double-dipping by drawing a salary for both jobs.

And that is a fourth Labour MP against doing both jobs.