Te Pāti Māori president John Tamihere says the singling out of Māori organisations has backfired and that any organisation working with the state should come under the same scrutiny.
Yesterday, a report released by the Public Service Commission (PSC) inquiry into the alleged misuse of Census and COVID-19 data by Manurewa Marae found, that several government agencies failed to implement proper safeguards to protect providers and personal data in the management of sharing personal information.
Tamihere says Manurewa Marae, Te Pou Matakana – the North Island Whānau Ora Commissioning Agency and the Waipareira Trust openly disclosed their connections to Te Pāti Māori, and as a result of this inquiry, the party is being unfairly treated as a criminal organisation.
He says if marae cannot be used for election voting, state health or Census drives, then other community hubs should also be excluded.
“They should not have them at churches. They should not have them in rural areas where the Federated Farmers groupings control them and run them. They shouldn’t have them in rich guys areas where the employers and businessmen unions work and control them,” says Tamihere.
John Tamihere says any information they have used comes from a database they own and have collected over years of community engagement.
