‘I’d give this government a zero for delivery’
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, the first ever Member of Parliament of Indian origin and National MP for four straight terms may be out of office at the moment, but he is as active in the community as he has always been – perhaps even more so now that he is free of the protocols of office. His continuing deep involvement in community affairs and issues is a measure of his strong commitment to public life as a leader. Indian Weekender correspondent Priti Garude caught up with Mr Bakshi soon after the National Party’s annual conference and spoke to him about the mood at the convention, whether Judith Collins will stay on as the leader and of the party and if National can win the 2023 elections.
How would you describe the mood at the National Party convention?
I think the mood was very good. The members are upbeat. The challenges that they are facing right now from this government, they feel they are united, and have similar viewpoints. What the party is saying right now, that has made a lot of difference to the mood of the members. I think it is going to be quite challenging for the Labour Party because of our Demand the Debate programme – it is getting a lot of attention.
Could you expand on the ‘Demand the Debate’ campaign and why do you think Kiwi Indians should care about it?
I think it is very important for everyone. This government right now has the majority, and they are doing what they want to, whereas the mood of the people is quite different. The latest example is the cycle bridge they wanted to build over the Harbour Bridge. $785 million for few thousand people to cross that bridge in the day or in a week, doesn't make any sense. And when they saw the poll that people were not supportive of it and then suddenly, they have withdrawn. This shows that they did not do any homework before announcing it.
$785 million is not a small amount whereas the Harbour Bridge that we have proposed has a tunnel which can carry cars and the trains together. It will make a lot of sense to people because they are wasting their time in traffic due to which productivity goes down. All these things are very important, which this government is totally ignoring.
Giving $2.75 million to the Mongrel Mob doesn't make any sense. This money could have been well spent in some other areas, so this government is not at all listening to the people.
Another major issue is immigration. This government doesn't care for split families. People who have been stuck overseas or they are in New Zealand and their families are overseas, it’s taking a toll on their families, on their mental health. At the conference, we had two speakers who have gone through mental health issue because of this, and both when they shared their stories, were given standing ovation by a room full of 700 people. That shows that this government is not listening to people. They are just doing what they want to do, and that's not what New Zealanders are looking for so.
Was there any further discussion on immigration at the Convention?
Formally, we didn't have a discussion because only last week we announced a policy. What we will do for immigration, a full and final policy will be announced later, but we are going around the country and talking to people. I have organised a few meetings around the country. The first one was in Christchurch, Auckland, Wellington, and now the next ones in pipeline are Rotorua and Hamilton.
We are talking to the migrants, and the turnout for these meeting has been tremendous. People are upset and there are so many stories where people who have been in New Zealand for 10 years but can't get their families in, are now giving up and going overseas. People are migrating in bulk now. It has started and you will see the difference in the coming days. A lot of people will be going overseas.
You might have seen the report launched by Sunit Prakash and Lalita Kasanji which said that Kiwi Indian IT professionals contributed over $350 million to the New Zealand economy in 2020.
And this is just the Indian diaspora. You can see the contribution we are making, but we are not getting the recognition in return.
What are the three big things that the National Party has learned after the last elections?
Obviously, we had our SGM during our AGM, where we identified how we should be progressing for 2023 elections. Some changes have been made to the Constitution of the National Party which have been implemented. For example, the term for board members cannot be for more than nine years and we will have a President election every year. These things will be implemented and hopefully we'll see the results in coming days and months.
With two more years to go, do you think Judith Collins will stay on as the National Party Leader or will she be rolled?
I don't see any reason why she should be rolled. She is doing a good job and she will continue. But it is up to the caucus. I didn't see any such mood in the caucus. I did talk to many of my former colleagues, and they are rightly behind her and hopefully, she will continue and lead us in 2023.
Do you think National Party can win in 2023?
Definitely! Because we can see this government talks a lot, but when it comes to delivering, they don't deliver anything. In first term of this election, they had a big excuse that Winston Peter is not allowing us to do these many things, but now the true colors of this party are out. We have seen they are anti-migrants. They don't want the migrants to come over, but they had the excuse, no NZ First in not allowing us, but that is not true. Now they can do whatever they want, and we have seen that migrant numbers are dropping day by day. And the contribution of the migrants is not well recognised by this government, and that is the worst thing which migrants can think about.
They wanted to deliver 10,000 houses every year. They haven't delivered even 10,000 thousand in four years – so that shows that they haven't done anything. They don't know what they are talking about. They have just tried to win people by saying some good slogans and when it comes to delivery, they are zero. So, I would give this government a zero for delivery.
National sets agenda for 2023
The National Party held its 85th Annual Conference over the weekend, setting the agenda and direction for the party for the 2023 elections.
National Party leader, Judith Collins in her Leader’s speech on the last day of the conference, opted to steer clear of making any policy announcements, rather focusing on highlighting the shortcomings and broken promises of the current Labour government. She outlined key areas of focus for the party – lifting incomes, growing the technology sector, getting houses built, getting Kiwis home safely and quickly each day, educating them to succeed globally, making our communities safe and reversing the growth of gangs and ensuring quality healthcare and mental healthcare.
In her speech, Collins also pressed on the importance of the ‘Demand the Debate’ campaign; jump started by the party to hear the voice of New Zealanders on issues that matter to them. The three-day conference was attended by some 700 party members and facelifted panel discussions on topics like rural communities, the economy, IT, digital and space, COVID-19 and mental health. The conference also included the party’s special general meeting and annual general meeting. Peter Goodfellow was re-elected President.
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, the first ever Member of Parliament of Indian origin and National MP for four straight terms may be out of office at the moment, but he is as active in the community as he has always been – perhaps even more so now that he is free of the protocols of office. His continuing...
Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi, the first ever Member of Parliament of Indian origin and National MP for four straight terms may be out of office at the moment, but he is as active in the community as he has always been – perhaps even more so now that he is free of the protocols of office. His continuing deep involvement in community affairs and issues is a measure of his strong commitment to public life as a leader. Indian Weekender correspondent Priti Garude caught up with Mr Bakshi soon after the National Party’s annual conference and spoke to him about the mood at the convention, whether Judith Collins will stay on as the leader and of the party and if National can win the 2023 elections.
How would you describe the mood at the National Party convention?
I think the mood was very good. The members are upbeat. The challenges that they are facing right now from this government, they feel they are united, and have similar viewpoints. What the party is saying right now, that has made a lot of difference to the mood of the members. I think it is going to be quite challenging for the Labour Party because of our Demand the Debate programme – it is getting a lot of attention.
Could you expand on the ‘Demand the Debate’ campaign and why do you think Kiwi Indians should care about it?
I think it is very important for everyone. This government right now has the majority, and they are doing what they want to, whereas the mood of the people is quite different. The latest example is the cycle bridge they wanted to build over the Harbour Bridge. $785 million for few thousand people to cross that bridge in the day or in a week, doesn't make any sense. And when they saw the poll that people were not supportive of it and then suddenly, they have withdrawn. This shows that they did not do any homework before announcing it.
$785 million is not a small amount whereas the Harbour Bridge that we have proposed has a tunnel which can carry cars and the trains together. It will make a lot of sense to people because they are wasting their time in traffic due to which productivity goes down. All these things are very important, which this government is totally ignoring.
Giving $2.75 million to the Mongrel Mob doesn't make any sense. This money could have been well spent in some other areas, so this government is not at all listening to the people.
Another major issue is immigration. This government doesn't care for split families. People who have been stuck overseas or they are in New Zealand and their families are overseas, it’s taking a toll on their families, on their mental health. At the conference, we had two speakers who have gone through mental health issue because of this, and both when they shared their stories, were given standing ovation by a room full of 700 people. That shows that this government is not listening to people. They are just doing what they want to do, and that's not what New Zealanders are looking for so.
Was there any further discussion on immigration at the Convention?
Formally, we didn't have a discussion because only last week we announced a policy. What we will do for immigration, a full and final policy will be announced later, but we are going around the country and talking to people. I have organised a few meetings around the country. The first one was in Christchurch, Auckland, Wellington, and now the next ones in pipeline are Rotorua and Hamilton.
We are talking to the migrants, and the turnout for these meeting has been tremendous. People are upset and there are so many stories where people who have been in New Zealand for 10 years but can't get their families in, are now giving up and going overseas. People are migrating in bulk now. It has started and you will see the difference in the coming days. A lot of people will be going overseas.
You might have seen the report launched by Sunit Prakash and Lalita Kasanji which said that Kiwi Indian IT professionals contributed over $350 million to the New Zealand economy in 2020.
And this is just the Indian diaspora. You can see the contribution we are making, but we are not getting the recognition in return.
What are the three big things that the National Party has learned after the last elections?
Obviously, we had our SGM during our AGM, where we identified how we should be progressing for 2023 elections. Some changes have been made to the Constitution of the National Party which have been implemented. For example, the term for board members cannot be for more than nine years and we will have a President election every year. These things will be implemented and hopefully we'll see the results in coming days and months.
With two more years to go, do you think Judith Collins will stay on as the National Party Leader or will she be rolled?
I don't see any reason why she should be rolled. She is doing a good job and she will continue. But it is up to the caucus. I didn't see any such mood in the caucus. I did talk to many of my former colleagues, and they are rightly behind her and hopefully, she will continue and lead us in 2023.
Do you think National Party can win in 2023?
Definitely! Because we can see this government talks a lot, but when it comes to delivering, they don't deliver anything. In first term of this election, they had a big excuse that Winston Peter is not allowing us to do these many things, but now the true colors of this party are out. We have seen they are anti-migrants. They don't want the migrants to come over, but they had the excuse, no NZ First in not allowing us, but that is not true. Now they can do whatever they want, and we have seen that migrant numbers are dropping day by day. And the contribution of the migrants is not well recognised by this government, and that is the worst thing which migrants can think about.
They wanted to deliver 10,000 houses every year. They haven't delivered even 10,000 thousand in four years – so that shows that they haven't done anything. They don't know what they are talking about. They have just tried to win people by saying some good slogans and when it comes to delivery, they are zero. So, I would give this government a zero for delivery.
National sets agenda for 2023
The National Party held its 85th Annual Conference over the weekend, setting the agenda and direction for the party for the 2023 elections.
National Party leader, Judith Collins in her Leader’s speech on the last day of the conference, opted to steer clear of making any policy announcements, rather focusing on highlighting the shortcomings and broken promises of the current Labour government. She outlined key areas of focus for the party – lifting incomes, growing the technology sector, getting houses built, getting Kiwis home safely and quickly each day, educating them to succeed globally, making our communities safe and reversing the growth of gangs and ensuring quality healthcare and mental healthcare.
In her speech, Collins also pressed on the importance of the ‘Demand the Debate’ campaign; jump started by the party to hear the voice of New Zealanders on issues that matter to them. The three-day conference was attended by some 700 party members and facelifted panel discussions on topics like rural communities, the economy, IT, digital and space, COVID-19 and mental health. The conference also included the party’s special general meeting and annual general meeting. Peter Goodfellow was re-elected President.
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