Post by Kiwi Frontline on Aug 3, 2020 18:08:09 GMT 12
Dear New Zealand Citizen
Pro-democracy lobby group Democracy Action is outraged that COUNCILS ARE SPENDING UP TO EIGHT PERCENT OF TOTAL BUILD COSTS FOR COVID-19 INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS ON “IWI ENGAGEMENT”.
The organisation’s spokesperson, Lee Short says “Documents obtained by the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union under the Official Information Act contain the Waipa District Council’s budget for ‘shovel ready’ infrastructure projects. The budget for the projects, such as playgrounds and toilet blocks, contains $2m for iwi engagement. This is eight percent of the total build budget and is 25% more than project management costs which are 6% of the budget.”
“The Council will spend more money talking to iwi about the projects than they will on actually managing and delivering the project. This is not an appropriate use of taxpayers’ money.”
"The Council has framed this consultation as 'mana whenua will be invited to be involved through co-design of some aspects in the proposal and the sharing of iwi narratives of the region’. In reality, this process gives a group of New Zealanders special privileges based on ethnicity, and then pays them $2m for their ‘narratives’.
“The question is, how can the Waipa District Council justify such an exorbitant sum for iwi engagement at any time, let alone during a pandemic and with a looming recession?” asks Mr Short.
Lee Short
Chair
www.democracyaction.org.nz/
Pro-democracy lobby group Democracy Action is outraged that COUNCILS ARE SPENDING UP TO EIGHT PERCENT OF TOTAL BUILD COSTS FOR COVID-19 INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS ON “IWI ENGAGEMENT”.
The organisation’s spokesperson, Lee Short says “Documents obtained by the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union under the Official Information Act contain the Waipa District Council’s budget for ‘shovel ready’ infrastructure projects. The budget for the projects, such as playgrounds and toilet blocks, contains $2m for iwi engagement. This is eight percent of the total build budget and is 25% more than project management costs which are 6% of the budget.”
“The Council will spend more money talking to iwi about the projects than they will on actually managing and delivering the project. This is not an appropriate use of taxpayers’ money.”
"The Council has framed this consultation as 'mana whenua will be invited to be involved through co-design of some aspects in the proposal and the sharing of iwi narratives of the region’. In reality, this process gives a group of New Zealanders special privileges based on ethnicity, and then pays them $2m for their ‘narratives’.
“The question is, how can the Waipa District Council justify such an exorbitant sum for iwi engagement at any time, let alone during a pandemic and with a looming recession?” asks Mr Short.
Lee Short
Chair
www.democracyaction.org.nz/