Mana Candidate Advocating Terrorism?
Mana Manukau East Candidate John Minto has made comments today stating that if elected, he will use any means
necessary, including the use of ‘civil disobedience’ to make his electorate pokie machine free. Tamaki Independent
candidate Stephen Berry today called upon Minto to define exactly what he means by the use of the term ‘civil
disobedience.’
“It appears to me that what John Minto is advocating is the use of illegal force to strip individuals of their freedom
of choice and destroy the property rights of businesses. That is the advocacy of terrorism. If ‘civil disobedience’ does
not mean the destruction of pokie machines and preventing individuals from exercising their liberty, what does it mean?”
Berry has noticed the left have spun this term in the past to cover up its evil intent. “When genetically modified
plants were controversial several years ago, the left ran camps training participants in methods of civil disobedience
which involved destroying private property. I suspect that John Minto is an advocate of such methods for dealing with
pokie machines. Until he is clearer on his definition of civil disobedience, I will continue to suspect so.”
Stephen Berry believes that nothing should be done by the Government to deal with pokie machines. He believes that the
owners of such machines should not be required to donate any of their proceeds to charities, nor should there be any
regulations other than ensuring they are not accessible to children.
“This is an issue of personal responsibility, free enterprise and freedom of choice. Those are all concepts that John
Minto and the Mana party do not believe in. I am fully aware of the dangers of over indulging in the use of pokie
machines, having had my own problems with them years ago; however I do not think for a second that the negative
experiences some people have with them are any justification for the wholesale destruction of other individual’s
liberty.”
Ends
Stephen Berry Independent candidate, Tamaki