National committee rejects complaint against Connelly

Press, 19 December 1989, Page 1

National committee rejects complaint against Connelly

By

CULLEN SMITH

A National Party rules committee probe has rejected complaints about the recruitment methods of the party’s Yaldhurst candidate, Mr John Connelly. “I’ve very pleased the matter has been resolved,” Mr Connelly said yesterday. “The result is exactly what I expected it to be. I had no doubt of the outcome.” The chairman of the party’s Canterbury-Westland division, Mrs Lee Burdon, said the committee carefully examined a complaint from 20 Yaldhurst members who claimed many people listed in the Hornby membership were not bona fide members.

“The rules committee ruled that there was no satisfactory evidence of irregularities which would have affected the result,” Mrs Burdon said. The decision was unanimous.

Mr Connelly, the Hornby branch chairman, signed up most of more than 1500 on the membership list — a feat which earned him the party’s canvasser of the year award in August. Hornby’s membership gave the branch 75 votes at the October

31 selection meeting which secured the candidacy for Mr Connelly. But the group of members audited a sample of the membership list and_ claimed the true membership was closer to 500, entitling the branch to only 25 delegate votes. The group sent its findings to

party headquarters in Wellington, calling for Mr Connelly’s removal as candidate or the withdrawal of the party’s endorsement of him.

Mrs Burdon said the rules committee had not upheld the complaint. No further comment would be made.

.....Mr.Connelly said he was happy with the result and would continue compaigning in the electorate.

Asked if he was given any message by the rules committee about his recruitment methods, Mr Connelly said: “No. Everything is in order — 100 per cent.”

Asked about written evidence from people in the electorate who denied meeting Mr Connelly during his campaigning and yet found their names on the membership list, he said, “People are entitled to change their minds, particularly if people go around doing surveys and ringing up about things that are not really their business.

“People aren’t going to be flaunting their ideas with everyone,” Mr Connelly said. “They certainly didn’t mind talking to me when I was on the road.”

Mr Connelly said he had not stopped campaigning for the last two years.

“I’ll be dealing with the issues that affect the electorate of Yaldhurst and their families. I’m not interested in all the other side issues and politics that have been dragged up.” Mr Connelly considered his chances of toppling the Labour Member of Parliament for Yaldhurst, Mrs Margaret Austin, were good. Yaldhurst had been hurt by the Labour Government, he said. “It has done very poorly under a Labour Government. There have been a lot of business closures — factories, freezing works, the glass works — and these people are angry,” he said.

Asked how he felt about the group which challenged his campaign methods, Mr Connelly said, “I regret what has happened with this particular group of people and I’m sorry that they felt that way.”

• However, he hoped he could get together with the group in the new year and that they would work as a team.

Mr Connelly said since the decision was announced he had received messages of support from National Party members and other people around the country.