The unthinkable has happened, I have made a mistake. Being a firm believer in owning your own shit I have apologised to Chris Carter and to his sister. A short time after I sent my apology email (below) Chris rang me and we had a pleasant chat about the whole incident. I thank Chris for taking the time to ring me, he certainly didn’t have to, the fact that he did and conducted himself in such a polite manner shows the measure of him.

I have well and truly harpooned my flipper on this one. Next time I will not be listening to CEO’s of telecommunications companies when they say I can bank on something.

Chris,

I would like to unreservedly apologise to you for the last couple of days. I was misled about the exact details of the situation and have now clarified that the Mrs Carter in question is not in anyway related to you.

Further the whole issue was a horrible mistake from beginning to end starting with the Telco and the CEO of that telco concerned and ending with me. The phone issue is in fact legitimate use of parliamentary resources.

Once again I sincerely apologise and will remove the posts about yourself and your sister. I will also post this apology on my blog.

Please also pass on my sincere apologies to your sister.

Regards

UPDATE: I have also had a pleasant email from Chris’s sister. Both Chris and his sister are certainly showing up my appalling behaviour.

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The best blogger on Fiji matter is Crosbie Walsh’s and today he must have had a cold cup of snarky because he delivered a smackdown to Cgris “Koru Club” Carter over his sanctimonious claptrap he delivered yesterday.

So what’s changed? What new wisdom has Labour brought to the table? Well, nothing actually. They said all this four years ago. They have merely  reacted to National’s initiative because that’s what an Opposition in a democracy is supposed to do. But they could have lost themselves quite a few few votes from former Fiji residents in doing so.  And in critical Auckland electorates at that.

My advice to Labour. Don’t re-visit past policy: nothing changes in four years. Don’t reseach issues: just apply your pre-progammed ideological position. Don’t send anyone to Fiji to see what’s going on. Oh, and don’t read this blog. Just keep repeating “Pretty Polly. Pretty Polly.”

Croz raises a good point. Probably the last Labour politician to do anything in Fiji Marion Hobbs. Labour also sent their lackey, Sir Paul Reeves, to deliver up a dogs breakfast of a constitution. A constitution that Labour insists must be retained. They ignore the endemic corruption of Qarase’s government and the blatant voter fraud at the last election. Fraud that was so obvious that even I know what the payoff was. But not blatant enough for Marion Hobbs to notice from the tranquility of her air-conditioned hotel suite.

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Crusin’ Chris Carter is a disgrace. In the TV3 video he stumbles and reveals the real issue that everyone including Boag are trying to cover up. In the video he says “The reality is I said don’t send…don’t divert the ferry”

That is as may be but the main issue here is that today was friday – a workday.

Isn’t he the MP for Te Atatu? What’s he doing spending friday at his bach in Waiheke rather than holding a clinic or opening a new factory etc in his electorate ???

Especially since he hasn’t been in Te Atatu (or NZ) for most of the year.

Further where is his report on the election in gay un-friendly St Kitts and Nevis.

The sad reality is that Chris Carter is the Te Atatu Trougher and can’t see what is wrong with light tripping off the fairy ferry dressed like a child done up from T&T kidswear when he should have been working for the people of Te Atatu and dressed more like the 50 something man girly-man he is.

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David Farrar (the Pinko) has an unusual tale. It’s unusual because he actually wrote it without any cut and paste pieces. The tale is also amusing.

Let’s call it the “Tale of the Fairy who Jumped A Ferry“.

What can one say, after I read it and picked myself up off the floor holding my sides with pain from all the laughter I thought, what must those people have thought?

I’m sure that when they saw the grinning visage of Chris Carter prancing light-footed up the gang plank a lot of things rushed through their minds.

Damn, I’m going to be late because of an MP!

Damn, He’s a long way from Ponsonby Road and this ferry is going to Waiheke!

This ferry goes nowhere near Te Atatu!

Does Fullers have a Gold Elite?

Nup, they didn’t think that at all, they probably thought, bloody poofs always have to make a scene.

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While Chris “Koru Club” Carter is away sunning himself in homophobic St Kitts I thought I would check what he has been saying about Foreign Affairs considering it is his portfolio for Labour.

Hmmmm….

What does Chris Carter actually do?

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This is un-fricken-believable. Chris “Koru Club” Carter has decided to take yet another junket on the taxpayer.

Labour MP Chris Carter is to lead a team monitoring general elections in the Caribbean state of St Kitts and Nevis.

Mr Carter said Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma asked him to head the five-person team monitoring the January 25 election.

The last election in 2004 was plagued by allegations of corrupt practices.

The team would spend 10 days in St Kitts and Nevis. It would write a report on the election.

Sending a Labour member to monitor an election in a country beset by corrupt practices! At least he will know how to recognise thembeing a member of the same party that is yet to distance itself from the corrupt practices that Taito Phillip Field was convicted of.

Oh and how convenient that the only election on offer to go and monitor happens to be in the Caribbean. Lastly just how believable is it that Chris “Koru Club” Carter was personally asked to go by some wallah at the Commonwealth. I bet he is taking Peter too.

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Chris “Cruising” Carter has a real trouble with foot in mouth disease and today on the Labour Party blog he has called Helen Clark a tramp.

No mention of “Private Dancer” on the trip though.

Chris "Cruising" Carter calls Helen Clark a tramp

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Are there different rules for pooftahs? Looks like there is, either that or the liberal elite Lame Stream Media repeaters are going soft on Chris Crusin’ Carter.

But it appears the edict was delivered after Labour MP Chris Carter racked up more than $57,000 in travel with his partner in the first six months of the year, making him the biggest spender among MPs.

Well are there. Rodney Hide paid back his travel for the lovely Louise. Bill English paid back his housing allowance despite doing nothing wrong. The media are hounding government MPs about spousal travel but no one seems to be hounding Chris Crusin’ Carter about his excessive travel with his husband.

What I want to know is if the taxpayers paid for the camel jockeys?

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Since Rick barker is in the news again it is timely to re-visit the Bill Liu case.

For those not familiar with interesting story Bill Liu is also known as Yong Ming Yan, Yang Liu and William Yan. He duped numerous MPs into supporting his application for NZ Citizenship including Dover Samuels, Rick Barker, Shane Jones, Chris Carter and Pansy Wong.

He was arrested in June 2009 and is currently facing 12 charges relating to false declarations on his immigration papers, having false passports and using deception to gain citizenship.

Via the Whaleoil tipline some more interesting information has come to light. But first a little reminder of how all those Labour MPs are linked to Bill Liu.

He was granted citizenship in a VIP ceremony in Wellington last year after lobbying from former Labour MP Dover Samuels, who regards him as a close friend.

Rick Barker, the then Internal Affairs Minister charged with approving citizenship applications, was also on the list of politicians who knew Yan. Because of this, he passed the file to another minister, Shane Jones.

Mr Jones overruled Internal Affairs advice that Liu – now Yan – did not meet character requirements and granted him citizenship.

These guys aren’t talking and the reason why they aren’t talking is that contrary to the sanitised official and labour Party that Bill Liu donated $5000 to Labour the real sums involved are far greater than that. Along with further information obtained the via the tipline may have revealed the real reason behind the pathological pursuit of a New Zealand passport.

Bill Liu was essentially trapped in New Zealand after Chinese officials canceled his travel documents, but like most Chinese businessmen based out of Hong Kong they have an official wife and a mainland mistress. the mainland mistress though can’t travel so there is trade in obtaining passports for themselves, but more importantly for their Mainland Chinese mistresses so they can travel with them.

As Investigate magazine at the time showed, Bill Liu was a man without an home and so he set about trying and ultimately succeeding in buying a New Zealand passport. The problem lies though with the sums involved and the heavy involvement of many Labour MPs and Shane Te Pou, a Labour party activist.

From TGIF we learn that Shane Te Pou, another person who also uses another name, Shane Phillips;

Tonight, TGIF Edition can also reveal that one of Yongming’s former associates in this country – Shane Phillips – was a Labour Party campaign manager, and his brother Daniel Phillips works in the office of Associate Immigration Minister Shane Jones – the man who gave ‘Bill Liu’ citizenship against the recommendations of officials who’d investigated his background.

All the information to date suggests that Shane Te Pou was the facilitator of Bill Liu’s approach to obtaining a New Zealand passport. He was also the bagman collecting the money for the Labour Party. Now this is where it gets real interesting and starts causing real problems for Dover Samuels, Chris Carter and in particular for Rick Barker and definitely for Shane Jones.

My informant tells me that the sums involved are far greater than a couple of donations of $5000 to various MP’s and in fact total around around $500,000 spread out over several years and laundered to the Labour Party via Shane Te Pou.

My informant also very specific about several locations and meeting including a birthday party where Mr Liu got very agitated about how much money he had paid over and why hadn’t his applications been approved yet. All of these agitated meetings and demands were performed in front of numerous witnesses.

Rick Barker was one of the first to sniff a rat but not before he had stayed several times in Bill Liu’s luxury Metropolis apartment. Barker at the time was the Minister of Internal Affairs and he was sticking with his officials and the Immigration Minister’s offical decisions that Bill Liu was a significant risk. Helen Clark changed the game first though with a ministerial shuffle.

Shane Jones was now the key player being the Associate Immigration Minister and it was him that approved Bill Liu’s passport and NZ Citizenship.

There is supposed to be an inquiry into all this through immigration but we are yet to hear th results of that. But a second informant has told me that $500,000 is quite cheap for the trade in passports and though Bill Liu thought he had paid quite enough for his passport the greedy little piggies at the Labour party were playing him. That is when the argument in front of many witnesses occured with Liu demanding his passport pronto.

My second informant tells me for example that St Kitts in the Caribbean sells passports for much more, especially for rich Hong Kong Chinese trying to also get one for the mainland mistress.

St Kitts offers what they call economic citizenship, essentially dual citizenship but at a price far higher than the cheapskates at the Labour Party were trying to sell passports to wanted international money laundering criminals.

The Economic Citizenship Programme for St. Kitts and Nevis was established in 1984 and provides the following benefits :-
•    Citizenship for life, for applicant and all eligible family members.
•    Dual Citizenship is permitted, without the requirement to notify the applicants home country, and without any need for the applicant to reside in St. Kitts/Nevis.
•    Passports will be issued to the applicant an all eligible family members, and may be easily renewed.
•    Visa-Free Travel to approximately 80 countries including :- Austria, Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Greece, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and most British commonwealth countries. When a visa is required, they are also relatively easy to obtain.
•    Full Residency Status and the right to work in St. Kitts/Nevis
•    Tax Free Status on foreign income, capital gains, gift, wealth and inheritance tax
Requirements
An application requires a non-refundable cash payment of US$35,000 for a single applicant plus US$15,000 for each dependent, plus a US$2,000 fee for a background check on any person included in the application, who is over 18 years of age.
In addition to the above fees are the associated legal fees which will vary depending on the number of persons included in the application, but are usually in the region of US$15,000.
Additionally, the applicant must invest a minimum of US$350,000 in government designated real estate, among which there are some excellent real estate developments. Please note that the investment required was increased by the government from the old level of US$250,000 in late 2006.  The total financial cost of economic citizenship for a single person in St. Kitts is therefore approx US$400,000.

So as you can see the $500,000 that Bill Liu had coughed to Labour was far cheaper than the other favoured passport of the rich and famous Chinese looking for a passport for their mainland mistresses.

This all makes the case of Bill Liu very, very interesting. Chasing a Kiwi passports so he can travel and probably also trying to get one for his mainland mistress, on the run from the Chinese government for money laundering a at the same time over 4 years coughing via Shane Te Pou around $500,000 to the Labour Party.

There are many, many questions that remain unanswered after all this time and now with Rick Barker in trouble again I think it is time that He and Shane Jones and  Chris Carter start telling the truth for just once in their miserable corrupt little lives.

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TV3 ran a story about veteran trougher and disaster tourist Chris Carter and his extravagant travel arrangements.

As I watched the story it got me thinking. He justifies all his trips with the explanation that he was representing Helen Clark or doing meetings and appearances with NZ’s reputation in mind. He also says he is a “very busy person”.

So, how about the diaries and full itineraries for all these trips are released so that we can judge whether or not the taxpayer did actually get value for money? For example, if I remember rightly, Tau Henare was pilloried in the Bolger/NZFirst government for travel where he did only one meeting per day while Lockwood Smith when he traveled was averaging 8 or 9 meetings a day.

For Chris Carter to say he is “a busy person” we really need to see his diary of meetings for all of those trips just to see if he actually was a busy person or just using the taxpayer to try to save his “marriage”.

The full itinerary would also show if there were any convenient holidays sandwiched in there somewhere on the taxpayers expense.

Transparency of all the details and sunlight are the best disinfectant for the stench of troughing. For me the troughing of MPs must be brought to heal. Fortunately this travel was while Carter was a minister so the information is available under the OIA, ot so for any travel by all MPs though as parliamentary Services remains firmly outside the OIA.

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From Wikipedia on the Kursk

While the tragedy of the Kursk played out in the Far North, Russia’s then President Vladimir Putin, though immediately informed of the tragedy, waited for five days before he broke a holiday at a presidential resort house in subtropical Sochi on the Black Sea before commenting publicly on the loss of the pride of the Northern Fleet. A year later he said: “I probably should have returned to Moscow, but nothing would have changed. I had the same level of communication both in Sochi and in Moscow, but from a PR point of view I could have demonstrated some special eagerness to return.”

Hurricane Katrina was a PR disaster for George W. Bush. He didn’t take enough interest, left the details to FEMA who were useless and suffered as a result.

The lessons are there to be learned.  Putin was was on holiday at the Black Sea and couldn’t see why he should not stay on holiday which really hurt his reputation amongst the Russians. George W. Bush fucked up royally with Katrina, but did Bill English and Murray McCully learn the lessons that leaders need to lead?

Nope they didn’t. The first two politicians on the plane out to Samoa this afternoon were Chris “Cruising” Carter and Winnie Laban, dispatched by the Co-Leader of Labour Phil Goff.

Where the fuck were our guys? Why wasn’t Nikki Kaye, Simon Bridges, Aaron Gilmore and every other available back-bencher especially the 2008 intake all put on the bloody plane complete with gumboots and “We Care” t-shirts and some shovels and spades bloody first. Oh no….the first support Samoa gets is from bloody Labour oiks! It is shit like this that really gets my goat with National sometimes.

Bill English is acting-Prime Minister and acting is all he seems t be able to do and Murray McCully is responsible for MFat. There are two heads right there that should roll. This really should be the final straw for Bill English.

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