Cosgrove Clayton: General Debates 
Cosgrove Clayton: General Debates 
[Volume:609;Page:6359] 
CLAYTON COSGROVE (NZ Labour—Waimakariri) 
: 
 It has been an interesting day in the House. First I want to touch on some comments that Mr Peters made. I have seen Mr Peters in many forms in and out of the House—we will not go into that—but what he demonstrated today by his brutal attack on John Tamihere which simply regurgitated a whole lot of things that have been talked about previously in the House by Mr Tamihere was the biggest display of the politics of envy that I have ever seen. Mr Peters referred to Mr Tamihere’s comments about the old guard in Maoridom. It is very interesting that Mr Peters concentrated on that because Mr Peters of course is the old guard. He is like one of those old wethers—I am not a farmer but I am told that is a very old sheep—that when it gets too old is taken to the works and dealt to. 
Hon Trevor Mallard 
: I wouldn’t describe him as a wether. 
CLAYTON COSGROVE 
: What would you describe him as? I say to Mr Peters that he knows that John Tamihere is better than him and twice the politician he is and I think it has finally got to him. 
I want to concentrate on what we have seen in the last week. I want to concentrate on Mr Hide’s attack on Mr Hemana Waaka. At the conclusion of this speech I will seek leave to table the declaration made before a justice of the peace that was given to Mr Dover Samuels that refutes according to Mr Waaka Mr Hide’s allegations and also challenges Mr Hide to make those allegations outside the House. We have seen that the ACT team is the party of rorters. I and others have talked about this. We know that Mr Hide came down to the House and made a personal explanation today which I will not refer to and apologised to the House. 
He never apologised to the hundreds of New Zealanders who lost millions of dollars in respect of a Fiji rort involving a conference that he attended. He never apologised to SydTaare the victim whom Mr Tamihere and I represented. What he did was to send the boys around—the lawyers—and threaten to sue him. He never apologised to the people of New Zealand for ACT denying Donna Awatere Huata her vote in order for ACT to retain $111000 of taxpayers’ money. The taxpayer is now forced to pay for the biggest beneficiary in our nation Ms Awatere Huata who is on $90000-plus per year but does not vote and is not allowed to speak. She should be out of here. But of course the ACT people somehow reconcile that as a fair go. Mr Hide never apologised regarding the Pipitea Street electoral office rort. I am told that the office is now moving from Pipitea Street to a location close to the High Court so the walking distance will be shorter—which is quite convenient for Mr Hide and Mr Prebble. He never apologised for that. He never came down to the House and apologised for acting in a thuggish way on Waiheke Island. He never apologised to the person whom he harassed in a certain latrine. He never apologised at all to that person. 
Then of course he came a gutser yesterday. I am all for accountability and everybody on the Government side of the House has said that they are all for cutting out corruption and dealing to those who misuse taxpayers’ money. I am all for that. We should get those people. They should be nailed. But what I am against is slander. I do not know Mr Waaka but when he says that a member of Parliament has wronged him in this House and challenges the member of Parliament to say it outside the House I think that member Mr Hide should front up and do that. Mr Hide’s modus operandi is very interesting. His modus operandi goes like this: whenever his feet get put to the fire he whips out a personal explanation because then we cannot talk about it. Whenever his feet are put to the fire he is like the school bully hiding behind the teacher—in this case behind parliamentary privilege. 
I would never accuse Mr Hide of being gutless. That would be out of order. I think he has a ton of it. I say to him that he should front up go outside the House and lay it all out. But what does he do? He comes in here and grandstands. I acknowledge the issues that we are now dealing with as a Government in terms of corrupt practice misuse of taxpayers’ money and people rorting but I find it just a tad ironic that when Mr Hide comes down to the House and apologises he does not apologise to that chap’s family. I do not know him. All I know is that there is a declaration refuting the allegations. Mr Hide does not apologise for the hurt he has caused but comes down here and grandstands. I say it is about time he fronted up outside the House and showed the guts he possesses. 
I seek leave to table a sworn declaration made by one Hemana Waaka JP to one Angela Gillespie JP outlining and refuting Mr Hide’s allegations. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Leave is sought to table that document. Is there any objection? There is objection.