Former Te Tai Tokerau MP Hone Harawira is calling for a rebuild of Te Pāti Māori in the face of the "greatest barrage of racist, anti-treaty, anti-environment, anti-worker legislation we have ever seen from one government".
In a statement posted on social media, the former Te Pāti Māori MP said the party was "tearing itself apart with not an enemy in sight" as its constituents were left wondering "what the hell is going on?"
"Our people don't understand what’s happening with the Party, but what they do know is that they are getting hammered, every single day."
He listed hardships such as benefit cuts, rising prices, stripped Treaty and land rights, "slashed" school food programmes, the Māori language “belittled”, and the rise of drugs, alcohol, homelessness, domestic violence, joblessness, jail.
“Our people are hurting in ways many of us just can't see,” he said.
Weeks-long infighting among the party has led to the expulsion of MPs Mariameno Kapa-Kingi and Takuta Ferris, a petition for party president John Tamihere to resign and attempts by iwi leaders to intervene.
“In times of crisis, our people should be at the forefront of our thoughts, they should be the measure of our commitment, the heart of our drive," Harawira said. "But they aren’t. They’re stranded on the sidelines, waiting for us to get this shit sorted out so we can get back to hammering the Government and building our base.”
He said the party’s constituents would not support the expulsions of Kapa-Kingi and Ferris, nor would they support the ousting of its current leadership.
“And the solution won't be found in starting a new party and forcing our people to take sides – a lasting memory I have from when I split with the Māori Party in 2011 was the confusion and sadness on the faces of our kuia, something I’d never want to see again,” he said.
After seven years as a Te Pāti Māori MP, Harawira left the party in 2011 to form the Mana Party, retaining his Te Tai Tokerau seat during the election that year, but then losing it to Labour’s Kelvin Davis in the next.
Harawira said the solution instead lay in acknowledging that the people’s needs came first and a "strong, united and focused team" was the way forward.
"Only with a strong united front of Te Pāti Māori MPs, can we lead a Māori, Greens, Labour coalition to throw this Government out in 2026. If we don't get rid of them next year, all the damage they have done will be entrenched over the next three, and all the gains of the past 25 years will be lost."
He listed seven recommendations, including the return of Kapa-Kingi and Ferris to the party; bringing "the whole team" together to find a way forward; outlining a way to manage differences and disputes; agree on a workplan; make a public declaration of “commitment and action” to Māori; and a national reconciliation tour.
"This is not the time to jockey for position or power," he said. "This is the time when all of us have to step up and work together, because our people deserve the best efforts that we can give."
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