Te Pāti Māori is calling out the Government and New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) for their inaction and disgraceful downplaying of the impact caused by the sunken HMNZS Manawanui in Samoa.

“We demand the Government move without further delay to clean up its shit from the sunken HMNZS Manawanui in Samoa,” said co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer.

“Three weeks have passed since the sinking of HMNZS Manawanui, and our Government continues to carelessly let it spill diesel into the moana of Samoa. It is time this inaction is called out, and the Government is taken to task.

“This Government continues to treat our environment as a dumping ground, and now our Samoan ‘āiga are also suffering the consequences of careless mismanagement.

“This is not just a spill in the ocean; it deprives the Tafitoala community and Samoan people of their moana, their food source, and their economy to survive.

“The fact that the Minister of Defence is downplaying the impact of the sunken Manawanui, calling the spill a ‘trickle’ and questioning the accuracy of Samoan authorities, is disgraceful.

“They must be prepared to compensate the Samoan Government and its communities for the cost of the impact on ecosystems and on the people whose life source has been compromised. They must also be transparent and accountable for any potential impacts on water quality and marine life.

“Failure to act will stain our relationship with Samoa. New Zealand has apologised enough to the ‘āiga of Samoa. Let this not be another case,” said Ngarewa-Packer.

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