MWK at New Zealand First AGM
MWK at New Zealand First AGM
Māna Wāhine Kōrero attend their first political party conference, by Di Landy
On the weekend 11th- 13th October I had the pleasure of attending the New Zealand First AGM and convention. There was a crew of us from all over NZ that met up. To be precise it was the OGNC - Original Gangsta Nan Crew (yous know you you are). Aptly named by my Moko, because we're always fighting the government, according to her. In true Nan-style on Saturday night after the formal dinner, we were all back in our room before 10PM - not so much with the 'gangsta' these days.
I shared a room with two other women: Karen Hall, from Parents Against Gender Education, and Chev Tavioni, our tee-shirt designer and printer. What great room-mates and friends. Thank you both. Sorry about the snoring Chev.
The conference day began, and we were shown to our respective areas, sitting at shared tables according to our region of the country. We opened by singing the national anthem in both Te Reo and English.
Then it was into the books being opened for all to see, accompanied by a thorough review weaved into a tale of the hows, wheres and what-fors of the golden purse.
Between guest speakers there was a process that was true democracy in action.
Members that wanted to, wrote a ‘remit’. A remit is a suggestion for future policy. The remit gets read out to every person, and speakers speak to it for two minutes. There were two speakers against and two for. A vote was then taken on whether to include the remit in policy-making. If any amendments were suggested, they were voted on as well. Not all remits get voted on, but the selection is random. There were 42 remits and over half were voted on. During this time NZF delegates were running the wireless microphones all over the hall to ensure speakers could be heard. Democracy takes time.
Although MWK's remit was not tabled, convention guest speaker Ro Edge, co-founder of Save Women's Sports Australasia, covered all the bases of the infiltration of gender ideology into our society. Her speech was brilliant - it's available below.
New Zealand First MPs were accessible and readily chatted with people. Photo opportunities with MPs were presented to those that wanted them.
Jacinta Price was another standout speaker, who discussed ‘The Voice’ in Australia. We all know the way university theories have taken over and are informing decisions in very high places, corporate and public, entrenching a victim mentality in our youth. We are not victims because of being born a native. Her video is here:
Dennis Maga from First Union also spoke, but I can't report on this as I wasn't present for his speech. If you would like to see it it's available here. https://x.com/nzfirst/status/1847467754221355230?t=8MVjgX2YS7nDHDLgj1WXMQ&s=07
Rt Hon Mr Winston Peters and Rt Hon Shane Jones have what I call a typical Northland humour and this reflects in their Kōrero. No surprise that both are from Northland. They both speak in a manner that is clever, well articulated on points and funny.
They are great examples to their younger candidates and their banter seems to give the younger and newer MPs permission to 'test the waters', so to speak.
Of course, 40 minutes through Mr. Peters' public address the Pally weirdos arrived waving their tea-towel hanky scarves screaming and yelling (so persuasive) and tried to disrupt the meeting. I want to see people fight against New Zealand's terrible child abuse problem. Every six weeks a child is brutally murdered in New Zealand, with terrible unceasing regularity. If these people wanted to do something about their cause they could join up, submit a remit, and take direct citizen action but they don't. Their brand is disruption, screaming, laying blame and getting clicks and likes, with nothing constructive to offer.
Mr. Peters, in his usual style, handled the screeching with humour and aplomb. Within five minutes he was carrying on with his public address.
All in all, it was a very good weekend, we all learned a lot and the kai was good too; heaps of it, beautifully presented, fresh and great selection. I thanked the chefs before I left.
I urge people to become members of New Zealand First, the only party in Parliament supporting women's sex-based rights and standing up against the harmful ideologies currently operating in our society. Attend their annual AGM - it's a great experience. Put in remits for future policies. Your voice does get heard.