Country or Party?

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 6633, 21 August 1931, Page 4

Country or Party?

WHICH SHOULD COME. FIRST.

(To tho Editor.) \ Sir, —When will tho timo arrive when Mr. Coates and thq other members of the Reform party will realise tho grave injury they are causing to the prestigo of their own party.and'to New Zealand by; their pusillanimous attitude in connection with the Rt.,Hon. Q. W, Forbes' splendid, offer in tho: matter of the.formation of a National Government'/ If tho country’s distress will not. make any appeal .to them, surely tho desire to rehabilitate themselves in. the estimation of the thinking section of tho community . will induce them to. change their extraordinary attitude.- Can they not see and read the writing on tho wall Can they not realise that by their obstinacy' and lack of appreciation of the serious economic condition, that has New Zealand in its deadly grip, they are placing a barrier to our future progress and prosperity? Can they not understand that in. the opinion of the .leading commercial and business men of the Dominion party politics, and all that it stands for, must be obliterated so that true understanding of tho country’s position may bo arrived at, and by an effective co-operation the difficulties, now standing in tho way, will be gradually removed? Can they not also see that they have alienated and are steadily alienating tho sympathy (and support) of a very largo number of their own adherents'?

That this contention is based on very solid ground is suroly proved by the fact that Mr. G. F. Roach, Mayor of Hastings, hitherto a supporter of the Reform party (who will contest the Hawke’s Bay seat as a United candidate), to quote his own words, “has been steadily coming to the belief that Mr. Coates and his party had shown that, when a period of national stress and general economic depression had, unfortunately, affected New Zealand, and all its inhabitants; when tho primary producers and all industries were suffering, and when the Prime Minister and his colleagues had made such a splendid offer to Mr. Coates and his party to co-operate and work unitedly for the salvation of New Zealand, they wero not prepared to place the interests of the Dominion and its people before that of mere party. So convinced am 1, (continued Mr. Roach) that the Prime Minister is pursuing the only course that will put New Zealand on its feet again, that I am prepared to stand wholeheartedly' behind Mr. Forbes to bring about this very desirable end.’’

Take the ease of-Mr. H. R. McKonzie, ex-chairman of the Auckland Harbour Board, one of that city’s leading men, who in consenting to contest the Auckland West seat as a United candidate (against tho Labour member, Mr. M. J. Savage) stated that “although he had been associated with the Reform party in the past, ho entirely disagreed with Mr. Coates’ attitude towards Mr. Forbes’ splendid fusion offer.’’. In Auckland, ’Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, leading business men, a largo number of whom have been identified with Reform for many years, have pressed—and have been most insistent in their pressure—upon Mr. Coates tho urgent necessity for him to act in the manner suggested.

Tako tlie case again of the 120 business and professional men and others in the Palmerston North district, who have recorded their entire agreement with.dhe proposals’ urging the formation of a National Government. They whole-heartedly support the resolutions ercently submitted to tho Prime Minister and to- tho Bt. Hon. J.G; Coates by the business and professional men throughout Neiv Zealand. Let me, in conclusion, quote a paragraph from their memorial forwarded to. the Prime Minister: "We feel that during the currency of' the present crisis no one party is strong enough to carry through tho financial and . other measures tiiat are necessary; and . that the formation of a strong National Government comprised of all political sections of Parliament that are prepared to place the national interests before those of party is essential. ”

Further comment on my part is surely unnecessary. New Zealand in its distress to-day is calling to it's representatives in Parliament, not to sacrifice their party, but to forget it—even if only temporarily—so that this fair land may emerge all the sooner from the disastrous effect of the world 's economic, crash.—l am. etc., COUNTRY FIRST.