12:11 PM |
NZ would-be MP dismisses 'Pacific' candidate tag
Updated
A Tokelauan New Zealander who wants to stand for Parliament in an upcoming by election says he wants to be selected because he's the best candidate, not because he is a Pacific Islander.
Kris Faafoi, who is currently the chief press secretary for New Zealand Labour Party leader Phil Goff, is currently the favourite out of four candidates who want to stand for Labour in the safe seat of Mana, north of Wellington. A by election has been triggered in the electorate because the sitting MP, Labour's Luamanuvao Winnie Laban, is stepping down to become the Pacific vice chancellor at Wellington's Victoria University. The Labour Party will select it's candidate on the 18th of this month, and whoever gets the nod is expected to win the by election easily.
Kris Faafoi says his being a Pacific Islander has little bearing on his chances in Mana, which although it has a substantial Pacific population, has a wide variety of ethnicities.
Presenter: Bruce Hill
Speaker: Kris Faafoi, New Zealand Labour Party preselection candidate in the seat of Mana
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FAAFOI: It's much more diverse than that. I think the stats are around 20 per cent Pacific, 20 per cent Maori and the remainder 60 per cent is European so there is definitely in this electorate. The Pacific community is a very strong community in the Mana electorate, especially in Porrirua where my family are, so while it is an advantage to be a Pacific Islander, I think given my personal and professional background, it's a seat that requires someone who can work across all communities.
HILL: It was held by Luamanuvao Winnie Laban, who was the first Pacific Island woman to win a seat and it was a seat in parliament. She was not elected on the actual list and of course we have Perseta Sam Loti-lega and Mangu Kerikeri who is a Samoan. He has won a seat for the National Party. Pacific Islanders seem to be getting more into the mainstream of politics and don't have to be elected just on a party list anymore?
FAAFOI: Absolutely, and I think that is a good sign for politics across the board that Pacific Islanders are starting to stake a claim at that national level. Sam is a good friend of mine. He is in the national Caucus and I think both Pacific Islanders are not coming on board politics just because of their Pacific Island background. It's because they actually achieving in the mainstream and I think that's a good sign.
HILL: What's the role for Pacific Islanders in New Zealand politics? If it becomes more mainstream, does that mean the Pacific people are being seen more as mainstream New Zealanders these days?
FAAFOI: Yeah, I think so. I am a second generation New Zealander. My parents came from Tokelau when they were young. While I am very in tune with how the Tokelauan and other Pacific communities their concerns, I have also, I am a Kiwi and I am aware of what the wider community needs as well and what their concerns are. So I think what you are seeing is because as Pacific Islanders are becoming more a part of the community, they are having more of a say at the higher level as well.
HILL: Now, you're a member of the Labour Party in the Rongotai Branch which is in Wellington, that's some distance away from Mana and of course you also work in the Labour Party leader, Phil Goff's office. Is there some sense that you might be one of the candidates that parachuted in from head office?
FAAFOI: That has been suggested, but as I said I am Tokelauan, I was born and raised in Christchurch actually, but because there were few Tokelauan families in Christchurch, most of my special family time would have been weddings, funerals or special Tokelauan occasions we spent in Portiloo and that's where my family is, where the bulk of my extended family, so that's my connection to the place and my grandmother is still out there and my grandfather is buried in a cemetery out there. Yes, I work in the Labour media unit and yes I have worked in closer to town, because that has been more convenient for me, because I have lived in and out of Wellington for ten years, but I have got a very strong family personal affiliation with the place. I am in and out of there all the time.
HILL: Do you like being called a Pacific candidate or do you like to be referred to as yourself? Did you want to be a Pacific person or mainstream person or both or neither?
FAAFOI: I am who I am. I am very proud of being Tokelauan, but I have also tried to use that and my own education and my own energy and determination to make it in the mainstream and I was a television journalist here in New Zealand and I worked for the main state broadcaster as a political reporter and covered two general elections. Now I didn't get there because I was a Pacific Islander. I got there because of my own hard work and determination, so I am absolutely proud of my heritage, but I don't want people to necessarily focus on that. I have got many other skills and I think what I have gained over time will help me across all communities in Mana.
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pacific islands media association
pima.nius@gmail.com
aotearoa, new zealand
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