WCC refuses to give the public any say on voting rights

Stuff reported:

Wellington Mayor Andy Foster has been accused of “delay tactics” and seeking “political cover” after he suggested a proposal to give iwi voting rights on council committees should be taken to the public.

A representative from each of Wellington’s two iwi will be given voting rights on all but one city council committee from July, after councillors voted 8-6 in favour of the proposal on Thursday.

Of course the public should be consulted. It is a major constitutional issue. Giving non-elected members votes on every Council committee is not a minor issue. Regardless of your view on it, it is arrogant to refuse to consult ratepayers on it.

Councillor Fleur Fitzsimons accused Foster of putting forward a “process delay amendment”, and ignoring the council’s treaty obligations.

She said she was not opposed to seeking public feedback because she was “too scared”, but because she was “too embarrassed”.

Can Cr Fitzsimons clearly state the clause of the Treaty that requires Iwi to have voting rights on council committees?

Councillor Jenny Condie agreed the proposal did not require formal public feedback, because it was “rectifying an injustice”.

She told Foster he was “waiting for potentially racist feedback to provide you with some political cover”.

While Cr Condie thinks you are a racist if you oppose non elected members having voting rights on council committees. Once again the term is used to denote anyone who disagrees with someone on an issue, rather than accept people can have different views in good faith.

Rebecca Matthews said seats on the council had traditionally been a “white privilege”.

WCC already has two Maori Councillors – all elected to the Council by the racist public they seem to despise.

UPDATE:

In a now deleted tweet, one Labour Councillor smears her fellow Councillors as racist because they didn’t vote to give unelected persons votes on Council committees. This shows how many on the left operate. They form a political preference on an issue, and then smear anyone who disagrees with them on the issue as racist.