Te Ururoa Flavell: Former Te Pati Māori co-leader on Toitū Te Tiriti cutting ties with the party

An ex-Māori party co-leader suspects problems within the current cohort as an influential former supporter cut ties.  

Toitū Te Tiriti's Eru Kapa-Kingi's described the party's leadership as "effectively a dictatorship model".   

The party's emailed members overnight, saying it remains committed to transparency, accountability, and unity. 

Former co-leader Te Ururoa Flavell told Mike Hosking he's not close to the leadership but based on the last few weeks there could be issues.   

Flavell's pointing to the fall out around Takuta Ferris and the removal of Mariameno Kapa-Kingi as whip. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
So let's get some insight into how much of a
mess the Mary Party you're in at the moment. The
protest movement to tidity are officially distancing themselves from the
party that they well, they're seen as major allies up
until this point, and then you've got the problem with
Labor of course, Flavel former co leaders with us, morning.

Speaker 2 (00:15):
Mate, Are you.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
Very well Eru karpa Key? I don't know him, do you?
He seems like a very affable, likable sort of bloke,
very articulate.

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Yeah, that's a good summary of him, very articulate, very
clear about what he's about, very confident, young, energitic, is
nice young men.

Speaker 1 (00:33):
Okay, So is he Is he troubled? I mean, what's
you try? What I couldn't work out yesterday was is
he just trying to distance himself? So, in other words,
what he's saying is we don't want to be aligned
with one group, we want to be our own people.
Or is he going there's something fundamentally wrong with the
Marory Party?

Speaker 2 (00:49):
Yeah? Probably two issues. I mean one, I think it's
fair to say that that he does he I mean
the statement that he's made as politicians need to stop
being activists and activists need to stop being politicians, which
I think is a fair call. So and in that
regard trying to separate out the movement that he set
up today, he said that that's their focus around the

(01:13):
obligations to the Treaty of Waiting and keeping those at
the forefront of the New Zealand society. And then the
second part of courses is what is the point of
the political movement in Parliament and how can they best
achieve goals for the best interest solve the nation.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Is the dictatorship thing. The thing is that your observation
that they got a problem run that.

Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, look, I sort of haven't been involved too much
with the party at that level since I left, But
on the face of it, you'd say, well, there's a
few things going on off the back of the things
that have happened last couple of weeks, you know, the
whole issue with Doug, with the Ferris, the removal of
moder Minna moder Minna as whip, and this sort of

(01:56):
statement sort of feels the fire in a sense that
there are a few issues going on. They were unwillingness
of some of the leadership to talk to media. I
mean there was a wonderful occasion when all any Fai
Potter was both into the parliament and yet pretty much
told not to speak or wasn't allowed to speak, or

(02:17):
other people took over. So on the face of it,
you'd say, there's a few things going on. How deep
and how wide that is? I'm not exactly close enough
to be able to give you an informed of the view.

Speaker 1 (02:27):
Real problems with Labor, isn't it. I mean, how did
Labor explain Maori Party too? Why did New Zealand who
are thinking these guys are crazy and we want nothing
to do with them.

Speaker 2 (02:36):
I think that's fair. You know. I did learn a
few things in parliament on one of them is is
that you maintain relationships despite very differences of you. You know,
not as if the Mighty Party was aligned with the
National Party back in the day when I was in
at the time of Studdy I named PTA as well.
But you got on and you had relationships with people,
knowing full well, and unless you're a part of the

(02:58):
governing party, you get enough. And how people expect a
lot from Mary MPs, in particular in the Mary Party,
they expect them to bring get some other get some action,
done not only through legislation, but in terms of turning
around the living conditions that many people suffer at the moment.
So I think, as I say, I think the point
around politicians being politicians made by it was a fair call.

Speaker 1 (03:20):
Good stuff math, nice to catch up, Appreciate it to
UUA Flabel format to Party Mari co leader for more
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