Mayoral debate: Indian community demands active engagement from all candidates
The clear message that came out from the event—Mayoral Candidates and Us: community interaction session—organised on Sunday, September 25 at Manukau Indian Association, was that Indian community demands active engagement from all candidates of mayoralty and the wider political process in New Zealand.
Six mayoral candidates—John Palino, Mark Thomas, Penny Bright, Chloe Swarbrick, and Phil Goff—pitched for the Indian community voters, who arrived on a rainy Sunday evening to listen to their mayoral candidates, clearly indicating that the community has strong expectations from their future mayor.
The session was inaugurated by Veer Khar, president, Manukau Indian Association, who invoked Gandhi, to identify the Indian community in New Zealand, stating, "our community loves engagement, like Gandhi, and wants to be engaged within the political process, here in New Zealand." Thus setting a tone of expectations for the mayoral candidates.
Although during the debate, the most popular areas of concern were focussed at housing, rates, and transport, the three most important things affecting average Aucklanders and discussed in many other mayoral debates around Auckland, yet the questions of debate in this event were framed in the context of the Indian community.
The debate started with the question that “how would you ensure an equal distribution of wealth and opportunity across different ethnic communities in Auckland?”
In answer to this question, almost all participants instinctively returned to their favourite themes heard at other mayoral debates around Auckland, albeit with a slight Indian touch, with an obvious goal of touching the pulse of their Indian-origin voters.
Notable in this endeavour was Vic Crone who batted for bringing smart digital technology to support future growth for Auckland, in a fashion similar to twenty digital smart cities being currently promoted in India.
Similarly, Chloe Swarbrick, the 22-year-old youngest ever contestant of mayoralty, also sought to connect with Gandhi directly to woo her prospective Indian-origin voters and to some extent to add more substance to her challenge to the current disconnect between people and local governance.
Interestingly, as seen in some other mayoral debates, there was a repetitive urge by some participants to target Phil Goff rather than focussing on what they could bring to the table.
A notable penchant among all candidates was to reframe their answers to any direct question about the expectations of Indian community, within the larger framework of South Auckland communities, pacific communities, or migrants in general.
This subtle caution, as demonstrated instinctively by candidates, was a source of quiet disappointment for many within the Indian community. On being probed further, Khar articulated this disappointment combatively, stating that “this is not new. But it has to change, because Indian community cannot afford to sit on fence for long.”
The session was ended by Khar's assertion that the Kiwi-Indian community was a force to reckon with, and is here to stay and engage.
The clear message that came out from the event—Mayoral Candidates and Us: community interaction session—organised on Sunday, September 25 at Manukau Indian Association, was that Indian community demands active engagement from all candidates of mayoralty and the wider political process in New...
The clear message that came out from the event—Mayoral Candidates and Us: community interaction session—organised on Sunday, September 25 at Manukau Indian Association, was that Indian community demands active engagement from all candidates of mayoralty and the wider political process in New Zealand.
Six mayoral candidates—John Palino, Mark Thomas, Penny Bright, Chloe Swarbrick, and Phil Goff—pitched for the Indian community voters, who arrived on a rainy Sunday evening to listen to their mayoral candidates, clearly indicating that the community has strong expectations from their future mayor.
The session was inaugurated by Veer Khar, president, Manukau Indian Association, who invoked Gandhi, to identify the Indian community in New Zealand, stating, "our community loves engagement, like Gandhi, and wants to be engaged within the political process, here in New Zealand." Thus setting a tone of expectations for the mayoral candidates.
Although during the debate, the most popular areas of concern were focussed at housing, rates, and transport, the three most important things affecting average Aucklanders and discussed in many other mayoral debates around Auckland, yet the questions of debate in this event were framed in the context of the Indian community.
The debate started with the question that “how would you ensure an equal distribution of wealth and opportunity across different ethnic communities in Auckland?”
In answer to this question, almost all participants instinctively returned to their favourite themes heard at other mayoral debates around Auckland, albeit with a slight Indian touch, with an obvious goal of touching the pulse of their Indian-origin voters.
Notable in this endeavour was Vic Crone who batted for bringing smart digital technology to support future growth for Auckland, in a fashion similar to twenty digital smart cities being currently promoted in India.
Similarly, Chloe Swarbrick, the 22-year-old youngest ever contestant of mayoralty, also sought to connect with Gandhi directly to woo her prospective Indian-origin voters and to some extent to add more substance to her challenge to the current disconnect between people and local governance.
Interestingly, as seen in some other mayoral debates, there was a repetitive urge by some participants to target Phil Goff rather than focussing on what they could bring to the table.
A notable penchant among all candidates was to reframe their answers to any direct question about the expectations of Indian community, within the larger framework of South Auckland communities, pacific communities, or migrants in general.
This subtle caution, as demonstrated instinctively by candidates, was a source of quiet disappointment for many within the Indian community. On being probed further, Khar articulated this disappointment combatively, stating that “this is not new. But it has to change, because Indian community cannot afford to sit on fence for long.”
The session was ended by Khar's assertion that the Kiwi-Indian community was a force to reckon with, and is here to stay and engage.
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