Auckland (The NZ Today)
A public meeting with NZ First deputy leader Shane Jones in Gisborne was briefly disrupted after a protester stood up and began chanting in te reo Māori.
The woman interrupted Jones during the meeting before being asked to leave after several seconds.
“You’ve had your kōrero [say],” Jones told the protester as she was removed from the venue.
The woman said she was attending the meeting to speak up for the “existential future of our mokopuna” (grandchildren).
During the interruption, she made claims about funding being directed towards organisations including the Atlas Network, the New Zealand Initiative and neo-Nazi groups.
Jones challenged the protester to leave, telling her: “This is not your meeting. Off you go – haere rā, haere rā, haere rā.”
He also made a light-hearted remark while the disruption was being dealt with, saying, “Kapa haka is next week.”
However, after the woman was escorted out, Jones defended the importance of allowing people to attend public meetings and voice disagreement.
“Politicians tend to shy away from coming to your territory, but in fairness, I have the public meetings; we want people to ask questions,” he said.
Jones said those who disagreed with NZ First’s views had the opportunity to express that through the democratic process.
“We have a manifesto – we have a different view, and if you don’t like it, vote against it, simple as that,” he said.
The incident comes as political parties continue campaigning ahead of the election, with public meetings becoming a key forum for candidates to engage directly with voters and opponents.
Source: NZ Herald reporting.
