Perspective with Heather du Plessis-Allan: Jacinda, Grant, Chippy and Ayesha can't prevent accountability

I think what many of us are experiencing right now, re: Jacinda, Grant, Chippy and Ayesha not fronting publicly for the COVID inquiry is not disappointment, because disappointment requires us to have had a higher expectation of them.

And I don't think that we did, because I think we got the measure of these people a long time ago.

I think what we're experiencing right now is a sense of injustice, because these people had the power, and they used that power to do things to our lives that no other politicians in the history of this country have done.

They told us not to leave our homes, they shut the border so that we couldn't leave the country or come back in. They ended some businesses through their rules, they effectively forced people out of jobs for not taking a vaccine that I would say most of us don't even bother with now.

Now, we can argue about whether any of that or all of that was justified, but I don't think we can argue about how massive that was. It was huge, unprecedented power.

Now, with power comes responsibility and accountability - and that's where they're letting us down because they are refusing to be held accountable, even if just in answering questions in front of us, for us to be able to see it.

Now, right or wrong, their actions during Covid caused so many people to lose faith in Government. This was their chance, I think, to restore that a little bit.

Instead, what they're doing is they're causing us to lose even more faith in Government. If these people ever tell themselves or us that they are here to serve, it is utter BS.

They're not here to serve. If they were, every single one of them would put their country's expectations of answers ahead of their own ambitions, but they're not.

It's more important for Jacinda to keep managing her brand and living her best international life of glamour. More important for Grant Robertson to keep pulling in that $630,000 a year at Otago. More important for Chippy to try to have another go - deluded - at being Prime Minister again and more important for Ayesha to preserve whatever credibility she has left as a health academic.

But they should know, they can delay accountability, but they cannot prevent accountability. And they will be held accountable.

Maybe through a future Commission of Inquiry one day or maybe just through the history books that eventually trash their reputations like history has trashed so many other politicians, including Muldoon's.

Either way, add to the long list of unpleasant things that we've learned about them, we can now add cowardice to that list too.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Look, I think what many of us are experiencing right
now Regisinda and Grant and Chippy and Icehare not fronting
publicly for the COVID inquiry is not disappointment, because disappointment
requires us to have had a higher expectation of them,
and I don't think that we did, because I think
we got the measure of these people a long time ago.
I think what we're experiencing right now is a sense
of injustice because these people had the power, and they

(00:22):
used that power to do things to our lives that
no other politicians in the history of this country have done.
They told us not to leave our homes. They shut
the border so that we couldn't leave the country or
come back in. They ended some businesses through their rules.
They effectively forced people out of jobs for not taking
a vaccine that I would say most of us don't
even bother with. Now. Now, we can argue about whether

(00:44):
any of that or all of that was justified, but
I don't think we can argue about how massive that was.
It was huge, unprecedented power. Now, with power comes responsibility
and accountability, and that's where they're letting us down because
they are refusing to be held accountable, even if just
answering questions in front of us for us to be
able to see it now right or wrong. Their actions

(01:05):
during COVID caused so many people to lose faith in government.
This was their chance, I think, to restore that a
little bit. Instead, what they're doing is they causing us
to lose even more faith in government. If these people
ever tell themselves or us that they are here to serve,
it is utter bs. They're not here to serve. If
they were, every single one of them would put their
country's expectations of answers ahead of their own ambitions. But

(01:26):
they're not. It's more important for Jacinda to keep managing
her brand and living her best international life of Glamour.
More important for Grant Robertson to keep pulling in that
six hundred and thirty thousand dollars a year at Otago.
More important for Chippy to try to have another go,
deluded at being Prime Minister again. More important for I
should to preserve whatever credibility she has left as a
health academic. But they should know. They can delay accountability,

(01:49):
but they cannot prevent accountability. They will be held accountable,
maybe through a future commission of inquiry one day, maybe
just through the history books that eventually trash their reputations.
History has trashed so many other politicians, including Muldoons. Either
way add to the long list of unpleasant things that
we've learned about them. We can now add cowardice to

(02:10):
that list too. For more from Heather Duplessy Allen Drive,
listen live to news Talks it'd B from four pm weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.