Mana: Unemployed Are Being Ignored

MANA Candidate for Waiariki Annette Sykes is angry that no other political party is providing an answer to eliminating unemployment.

Annette Sykes says 62%, or nearly 2000 of the unemployed in the Bay of Plenty are Maori and its having devastating effects on the community.

"That is an indictment on the current National, ACT and Maori Party Government who under their watch have seen unemployment rise.

"MANA is the only party offering a solution to getting rid of unemployment once and for all.

"There are three factors that are going to impact harshly upon the Waiariki job market. Firstly there is the European debt crisis that will affect the entire country. Secondly there is the PSA disease crippling kiwifruit crops and thus impacting upon the need for seasonal pickers. Thirdly there is the Rena disaster with its oil and containers washing upon our shores and scaring away summer holiday tourists.

"If we think that Maori unemployment is bad, wait for another few months. Christmas is around the corner and already whanau are scrambling their dollars together to make ends meet."

Annette Sykes says MANA promotes shifting all unemployed workers and placing them into jobs in schools, marae, hospitals and councils.

"There are some huge gaps appearing in some neighbourhoods and we would like to see our people becoming work ready by helping the community in which they live.

"Our people remember with great fondness the old PEP schemes.

They created a pathway for our people to feel valued after being out of work."

MANA wants to see the scheme reintroduced during the recession we are experiencing.

"The silence coming from other political parties is deafening and MANA remains committed to see Waiariki unemployment being reduced to zero," Annette Sykes says.

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