MAORI ELECTIONS

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXIII, Issue 275, 3 November 1933, Page 5

MAORI ELECTIONS

BALLOTS NOT SECRET Better System Asked For NATIVE MEMBER’S BILL (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Nov 3* Introducing the Electoral Amendment Bill in the House of Kepresentatives Mr E. T. Tirikateno (Southern Maori) explained that voting in Maori elections was not by secret ballot, but by declaration to the returning officer and his associate. Scrutineers were uot allowed in the booth until the votes

were being counted. Mr J. A. Lee (Grey Lynn): After the damage has been done. Mr Tirikateno said that the Bill sought to allow scrutineers to be in the booths while a poll was being taken Sir Apirana Ngata said that the Prime Minister had gone into the question of Maori elections with the elec toral office. Had he known the Bill was to be introduced to-day he would have sought the Prime Minister’s permission to make a statement on the subject. As it was, he felt inclined to think that the remedy suggested by Mr Tirikatene would probably make the position worse, if secrecy was the object at which he was aiming. Secrecy would not be ensured by having more publicity. Mr W. E. Barnard (Napier): Would it not supply a check on the returning officer?

Sir Apirana Ngata: Yes. I don’t think any Maori member of the House wotild object to the presence of scrutineers during a poll.

The Minister said that the whole problem of arranging a more satisfactory system for Maori elections was full of difficulties. There had been intention during Mr Massey’s administration to prepare Maori electoral rolls, but this had not been found altogether practicable. There was difficulty as a result of the eligibility of Maoris to vote in pakeha elections, and the question of the desirability of abolishing separate Maori representation might eventually be involved. He did not think that sentiment at the present time favoured such a course, and he thought that that sentiment did credit to the pakehas. The Bill was read the first time.