Sack the CEO or nationalise the Port of Auckland

The Chair of the National Maori Authority has ramped up the call for the CEO of the Ports of Auckland to resign or be sacked. Tukaki has gone further and said if the Board of the Ports of Auckland don’t act then the Port should be nationalised and placed into Central Government control. Tukaki has said not only should the CEO, Tony Gibson, stand down as a result of the damning reports into work health and safety but also the way the Port is being managed is no longer in the national interest:

“We must stand up for the rights of workers at the Port and to be frank with a large Maori workforce I am fundamentally concerned that what is happening is putting Maori at risk – and where that is happening to our whanau its happening to every other worker down there no matter there background.” Tukaki said

“And its not just the health and safety aspect that has been ignored for far too long its also the cultural aspect of how Maori are treated more generally – and to be frank in this day and age to have a report sitting on the shelves as long as it has on both OH&S and Maori is down right appalling” Tukaki said

“When someone heads off to work they and their whanau should expect they come home safe and well. Not dead, not injured and sure as hell not dysfunctional because or the pressures of the workplace.” Tukaki said

Tukaki went further and said the operations of the Port were no longer in New Zealand’s interest and sighted numerous back logs, failures in equipment and lengthy delays:

“This excuse that COVID is to blame is nothing more than a smokescreen. The continued use of the pandemic around shipping delays and freight movements right through to the latest around the blockage in the Suez Canal are all being used when what we have here is a wholesale challenge of our maritime supply and distribution channels and to be frank there should have been a contingency plan in place from the Ports and there obviously wasn’t.” Tukaki said

“Instead what we have seen is an increase in load capacity across the road networks between the North and Auckland and the Bay of Plenty and Auckland – more pressure on the roads by an increase in truck traffic and the greater risk of accidents. It should not take a plethora of incidents for this CEO to go.” Tukaki

“Our infrastructure deserves a lot more than the piecemeal approach being taken by the Board of the Ports of Auckland and so critical is the Ports operations and the national supply chain that if they cannot manage, if the City of Auckland cannot manage then turn it over. Turn it over and nationalise it in the interests of the economy” Tukaki said