“IN GREAT HEART”

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22617, 21 April 1948, Page 6

“IN GREAT HEART”

NATIONAL PARTY BRANCH MEETINGS With the holding of the meeting of tiie Te Hapara branch on Monday night, the Nation?.! Party organisation has virtually completed the holding of branch annual meetings in the Gisborne electorate and tne northern part of 'he- Hawke’s Bay electorate which. for organisation purposes, is handled "torn Gisborne. The Gisborne electorate chairman, Mr. I. J. Quigley, has attended all the branch meetings in his electorate, and the secretary Mr. H. H. Barker, lias attended every meeting in both electorates. Attendance at these meetings—there are 23 brandies in the Gisborne electorate ar.d nine in the Hawke's Ray area —has involved more than 1000 miles cf travelling. Strong Public Interest

Reviewing the tour. Mr. Quigley said ho had been amazed at the interest which >"as ‘oday taken in politics and at the attendance at meetings throughout <he electorate. Tt was clear that the district organisation was in great heart and full of an'husiasm. He thought it was fair to claim that the National Party organisation at the last election was the cause of Gisborne having sot an all-time record for the percentage of votes cast. What had happened in this electorate was more or less tvpicnl of the experience throughout the Dominion The National partv had onlv been formed in 1930. when it had IP members in Parliament and a total vote throughout the Dominion of only about 200.000 Todev, it had more than 1100 branches and its member shin was actually higher than its vote at the time it was formed Rank-anti-File Opportunities Mr. Quidcv expressed the opinion that the grov'h of Ibe narty was doe to the fuller realisation of its democratic basis For instance the branch meetings winch had been held in roeen' weeks had "Won the rank-and-file of the organisation in every' part of the electorate an opportunity of oxprossing opinions regarding the poliev and aetivitv of the partv and of appointing delegates who would have a direct voice in the higher councils of the party’. The ne"’t step would be the meetings of the foR electorate committees, that of Hawke’s Bay on May 8 and of Gisborne on May 13. These would he followed by the meetings of the divisional committees and finalh' by’ the Dominion c r ”' f m n,.^oU; n