Having presided over (seemingly) innumerable disgusting, even outrageous deportations of people who eminently deserved the 'prerogative of mercy' (so to speak), spare me/us the sudden emerging out of the veritable woodwork of National Party-sympathizing lackeys and neophytes feigning faux outrage vis-a-vis this latest intricately-assessed and otherwise-nit-picked situation.
Hey, no doubt my memory's playing up, but - whichever Minister (at the time) it happened to be - do I or don't I distinctly recall a wonderful British fellow (and his family) being unceremoniously ejected and deported from Otorohunga(sp?) under the last Government's nine-year watch?
Someone moreover who'd provided lots of fantastic work (and related opportunities) to oodles of folk in that smallish North Island centre. Yet despite a long, long petitioning process (and awaiting some semblance of natural compassion from the authorities that be - to wit the Immigration Minister of the day)...far as I can recall nothing whatsoever came of it...
...and our great media simply let the matter disappear under ye proverbial rug and on into obscurity...
Afterthoughts (2.46 p.m., Friday the 9th of November)
A Little Ignorance Can Certainly Be An Exceedingly Dangerous Thing
Indeed, though I don't resile from any of my reflections upon preceding *National Government ministers and administrations...and their 'disposal' of various and sundry legitimate 'cases' of potential immigrants to NZ...or, for that matter, upon how various and sundry talkback hosts (the purely partisan, ideologically-driven ones, that is) ever and anon seize upon this bugbear and bane of our life and times...to cause undue fear and loathing among the citizenry...
I'll freely admit that my initial comments (immediately above) re the Iain Lees-Galloway botchup appear wholly wide of the mark...as things have since transpired and come out into the cold hard light of day and disinfectant... As Winston Churchill once **so memorably replied/responded to one of his political opponents/critics, when the absolute inconsistency between a position he now held and one he had held previously on the selfsame matter was held up to public view and derision: "When new and differing information comes to light I change and adjust to that reality. Prithee, Sir, what do you do?"
And Iain Lees-Galloway's alleged sins...for which he is well overdue for a proper sacking (and which make Clare Curran's and Mita Whaitiri's (sp?) relative failings look like ye proverbial walk in the public park)? Only a couple...though they do appear somewhat significant ones: essentially ***steadfastly, even radiantly, blaming all his subordinates/underlings (eat yer heart out, 'Yes Minister'!) for failings pretty much all of his own making; and taking the briefest of possible times to properly review the case (when it was put upon his desk) rather than being duly thoughtful and caretaking thereabouts as he'd led one and all to believe...
From Guyin(sp?) Espinot's (sp?) RNZ National interview with National Party immigration spokesperson (and former minister) Michael Woodhouse this morning it appears ILG pretty well did everything wrong (one could possibly do - wrong)...and, Friday being the day of dismissal, i.e. when the news cycle is quietening down for the weekend - no, I don't blame the current Govt, that's nothing on Textor and Crosby - I wouldn't rate Iain Lees-Galloway's chances of surviving (in cabinet) beyond today all that highly...even if P.M. Ardern has again seemingly categorically affirmed this very morning that she has no intention whatsoever of dismissing the ****felon!
*Just like many or most or all of their Labour Party Government counterparts, mind you...
**An extremely paraphrased version thereof, I'll grant...but I have read the quote for myself...I think! Otherwise I've certainly heard it read out.
***Apologies for the bad taste in utilizing the name of Radiant Steadfast (mother of eleven who just died overnight in the West Coast flooding) to express things rather cutely, but I mean no offence...
****Again, apologies for using a bit of journalistic licence (or latitude of language)...
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