21 August 2014
MEDIA STATEMENT
Time for side-shows to end so we can focus on future of our nation – Raniera (Sonny) Tau, Chairman, Te Runanga A Iwi O
Ngapuhi
The Dirty Politics saga has done our country a massive disservice in two ways, says Te Runanga A Iwi O Ngapuhi Chairman,
Raniera (Sonny) Tau.
“The theft of private emails cannot ever be condoned, ever. It is an invasion of privacy which cannot be tolerated in
Aotearoa. We have a right to freedom of expression and the right to live a normal life, without our private thoughts,
messages and communications being illegally accessed. It is a given which is much treasured in this wonderful land of
ours.
“It is not ok to hack into other people’s emails, and I would urge the police to take very seriously any complaints they
receive about this activity. And I am not talking about any one person here. I am talking about hacking per se.
“There is a sacred principle at stake here for all who live in our country.
“The second consequence of the hacked emails scandal is that it has distracted the media from what is really important
to Aotearoa at this time.
“We are less than a month away from a critical general election, and we the people, want to hear what the various
parties are proposing as their policies so we can make informed decisions when we go into the ballot box on 20
September.
‘”What we have had for a week is a series of side-shows that do not focus on what really matters to the future of Iwi
Maori or anyone else who lives in this great land. We want to know about the important issues of improved housing, jobs,
education, health and how parties plan to uplift the economies of our regions.
“I urge the media to put this in perspective. We’ve had a week of political theatre, now let’s get back to what matters
to the people.”