Mana protesting against better state houses
The Herald reports:
Protesters egged Prime Minister John Key’s ministerial BMW as it collected him from a state housing development in Napier this afternoon.
Mr Key was unhurt in the incident but one man was later arrested for obstruction.
The incident happened about midday in Maraenui as Mr Key concluded a visit to a new state housing development.
Earlier, about 10 protesters, some clutching Mana Party banners, greeted the prime minister and challenged him about child poverty and enabling synthetic cannabis to be sold.
They shouted: “One, two, three, four, stop the war on the poor,” and “Maraenui under attack, stand up, fight back”.
So what awful thing was the PM doing in Maraenui that Mana supporters think is an attack on the poor? Stuff has details:
Key appeared slightly miffed that protesters heckled him as he officially opened a new housing development aimed at improving the city’s poorest suburb.
Despite the crowds chanting ”Stop the war on the poor”, Key was impressed with the units saying they were nothing like the state house he grew up in, he told residents.
”The protesters, interestingly enough are protesting for us to do the very thing we’re doing. So they probably should have come in and congratulated us instead of yelled at us.”
Five families have already moved in to the Maraenui development which consists of seven two-bedroom single-storey units, centred around a central communal courtyard.
Crete Pinkham felt “lucky” to be living to be living in a warm, dry home.
”There’s no mould! I lived in mould all these years. We’d clean it up and it would grow back.”
So Mana is against low income families being moved into new warm, dry homes. No surprise I guess, as they are now aligned with the multi-millionairre who allegedly pays below minimum wage to his staff.
Over the last six years, the Government had been working to improve the run-down Housing New Zealand stock, Key said.
Large, uninsulated properties were being knocked down for smaller, warmer units.
”Cold damp homes are no place for New Zealanders. We want to put them in the six star properties we have here.”
Key admitted there was still a lot of work to do, including attracting more social housing providers into the market.
What an awful uncaring Government that is at war with the poor. Thank God we have Hone and Kim to lead us to a better place.