Our originating document, the Treaty of Waitangi, was signed on February 6, 1840. An agreement between Māori and the British Crown. Initially inked by Ngā Puhi in Waitangi, further signatures were added as it travelled south.

The intention was to establish a colony with the cession of sovereignty to the Crown, safeguard Māori rights and extend to them the rights and privileges of British subjects. A bilingual Treaty was translated by the missionaries. We ought not be surprised that the two versions have some differences.

It has become faddish to dismember the agreement into the English version as opposed to the Māori version, a political gimmick guaranteed to drive a wedge. The Treaty is indivisible, the underlying thread was best summed up by Governor Hobson, “he tahi tatou”. Together we are one people.

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As Waitangi Day has become a platform for political posturing, we must not lose sight of the truth of our history.

In signing the Treaty, we founded our nation, and from that foundation we established our parliament, passed laws, built an economy and went on to create so much for which we should be rightly proud.

Did we get everything right? Of course not. No nation can claim that luxury. But neither have we walked away from the opportunities to put
things right.

The Treaty of Waitangi has now become a weapon used to create sides of ‘oppressor’ and ‘oppressed’. We are not that nation, and we cannot
allow a political narrative to undermine our proud history.

Some willingly ignore parts of our history. Great Maori leaders such as Patuone and Tamati Waka Nene signed the treaty, not through ignorance, but because they knew what would ultimately be best for their people.

The majority of New Zealanders will use Waitangi Day to enjoy our country and their families. Some may even stop to recognize how lucky we are to call this country home.

New Zealand’s history was founded on the concept of service; serving your family, your community, your country, your whanau, your hapu, your iwi. To build and create, to take pride in what you do. New Zealand First knows this is what counts.

Every day we see headlines based upon guilt politics that will condemn our young people to stagnating in the racism of low expectations. It is time to use Waitangi Day to mark what was created rather than the reinterpretation of our history that suggests we should be mourning something lost.

There is much to be done, much that can be done and much that we will do when we are driven by aspiration to succeed.

As the French philosopher Jean Paul Sartre said “Only the guy that isn’t rowing has the time to rock the boat”.

It is time we all started rowing, and everyone has the capacity to help us move forward, together

Waitangi day has come and gone and the usual theatrics and noise ensued. New Zealand is a democracy with a complicated past, so robust debate is expected.

It’s important to keep a sense of perspective here. The media and a few rabble rousers love the controversy. This masks what is actually going on behind the scenes between Maori and the Government.

While at Waitangi, with my Associate Regional Development hat on, I had several constructive meetings with Iwi. Ngāpuhi, Tainui and Te Hiku (a collective of northern Iwi) were all keen to outline economic growth initiatives, ranging from water storage, aquaculture, horticulture, energy, social housing and skills training.

What the public don’t often see is that these Iwi and many others around the country, are now a significant economic force, hungry to unlock the potential of their land and build sustainable business opportunities.

They also want access to fast track consenting and less red tape. They are keen to partner with government through co-funding with the Regional Infrastructure Fund (RIF) and be partners in social housing development alongside other commercial partners. They take a long-term perspective and have a deep desire to provide a more prosperous future for their whanau and community.

This is not about pretending that all is sweetness and light and that there is not tensions as we map out these opportunities, and a ‘one size fits all’ approach is not the answer. It is about government and Maori having similar aspirations for outcomes and exploring ways to work together to achieve them.

That’s the way New Zealand First wants to operate, cut through the noise, together for the greater good.

Waitangi Day, the day our nation sets aside to remember a covenant made between two peoples, Māori and the British Crown.

Kiwis rightly celebrate being the first nation to give women the vote in 1893 and we are not ashamed to tell the world about it. What was engineered at Waitangi on Feb 6^th in 1840 was

equally ambitious as giving women the legal right to cast their ballot.

It was the coming together of two peoples each with vastly different histories, languages and spiritual views of the world. What is remarkable is the good faith that was brought together and the hope that was embedded in the words of Te Tiriti.

The aspirations that were imbued in this act would affect future generations. The promises had far reaching consequences of profound spiritual significance, regardless of one’s personal religious views.

185 years of history has of course occurred since then, and the good intentions previously made are now seen in the light of actual performance.

Inter-marriage has literally blended us into culturally diverse communities. Linguistically, something of a Kiwi creole (a blending of Māori and English) has developed in recent years, which can be challenging for some people.

Spiritually we are now in a different place from our forebears. Not only have Maori beliefs and practises diminished, but the ascendancy of Christianity has also diminished within the wake of a withering atheism of the “modern” era. 

So what will be left on our beaches in 2040, 200 years after the signing of Te Tiriti?

It is up to us who live here and breathe the beautiful air of the South Pacific to “do the mahi” and construct a future we can all enjoy.