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Lotu Fuli has served the Otara Papatoetoe local board for nearly a decade, but the last two years have been life changing.
“Because of covid, it showed how much our society relied on the digital world and how much our vulnerable communities don’t have access to digital devices and the internet and things like that,” she says.
“It isolated a huge portion of our communities in particular.”
Now she wants a seat at the top table to make an even more significant difference, standing for councillor of the Manukau ward. Mayoral candidate Efeso Collins currently holds the position.
“I think now it’s time to step up to that next level of decision-making and to sit along with some of our other friends like Josephine, Fanana and Alf so that we can effect even bigger changes for our communities here in South Auckland.”
Councillor Josephine Bartley hopes to repeat her efforts at the last elections when she won a tight contest for the Maungakiekie-Tamaki ward.
“I never count my chickens before they hatch, and I never take it for granted, so just do the work and hope that people see that,” she says.
She wants to push for more opportunities and support for vulnerable communities.
“My focus will definitely be on how we can make changes to our lives to address climate change, it’s a big deal, and in Auckland, we have got so many issues.
“Everybody always complains about being stuck in traffic. We’ve got so many people not on the housing spectrum, still living in their cars, garages and couches.”
In Manurewa, Sago Feagaiga is standing for both the local board and councillor of the Manurewa-Papakura Ward. She is hoping her Labour party affiliation will see her through.
“We are hoping to set a new precedent for Manurewa because, for 12 years since the supercity came in 2010, Manurewa-Papakura has been nothing but led locally by the opposition,” she says.
“I was selected by the NZ labour party, and we have a very strong Manurewa Labour team, and I believe it is time,” she says.
But her campaign has had its challenges. Last month one of her billboards was defaced with racial slurs.
“My father, he passed away last year and [he] always was a fighter, and he would always say to me, ‘Sago, if you are stuck and you don’t know what to do, do the right thing, always do the right thing, if you lose all your friends, but you do the right thing, it is a blessing.'”
Sago is determined to make her area a more attractive place to live for residents.
“Things have definitely changed in Manurewa. [There are] more and more people but not enough support or infrastructure for them.
“Unfortunately, I have lived here for 25 years, and both our shopping centres are not as attractive, not as vibrant. They have stayed the same.
“Economically, if we were able to provide our own people with jobs within our own ward, then our economy would flourish.”
Fale Andrew Lesa is another Manurewa hopeful standing for the local board but is one of few Pasifika candidates not aligned with Labour.
Instead, he will be standing as the sole Pasifika independent on the Love Manurewa Ticket.
“I’m proud of the fact that I’m not tied to a political party. Historically my family have always been Labour, but I think for the local government, you need to put the ‘local’ in ‘local government’ and not be bothered or tied down by the political aspirations of a national party,” he says.
Lesa says Manurewa has come a long way, producing international stars such as Jawsh 685 and Parris Goebel. But there is room for improvement.
“There’s a lot going on in our community, and we are very proud to be here, but the cost of living has hurt us very much, so it’s just about making sure that there’s enough at the table for all of us.”
Pacific candidates may be focused on the issues in their area, but there’s one thing that all agree on, that pacific representation is essential.
“We’re the fastest growing demographic in the country, and so if we’re looking to the future, then it’s important that we have that pacific voice at the table,” Lesa adds.
“Not just at the table but a driving force behind some of these future decisions such as public transport, climate change, the cost of living, that hurts pacific people more than anyone.”
In West Auckland, well-known director and playwright Oscar Kightley has also thrown his hat in the ring, standing on the labour ticket for the Massey Henderson Local board.
“Since I was a cadet reporter, 18 years old, living in Te Atatu working for the Auckland Star and covering local council, I think that was when the seed was planted – just some kind of local representation,” he says.
While he’s just started his political journey, he’s keen to make a tangible impact on his community.
“It’s not like the central government where you have these imagined fantasies and change the world. A lot of the work is real nuts and bolts – it’s clean creeks, it’s finishing the walkway around Te Atatu Peninsula.
“I’m not going to make these grandiose promises, you know, make up cool sentences. It is that nuts and bolts, day-to-day stuff.”
