A poem for the 2020 General Election

Oliver Neighbourly Lead from One Tree Point

Election time is coming
And I am worried sick
What candidate and party
Should I award my tick?

I'm reasonably well-informed
And have an open mind
So here's my message to you all
Be truthful and be kind

Drop all your usual rhetoric
Forget the GDP
A genuine focus on wellbeing
Is what I want to see

Leave port moves to the experts
No barrel and no pork
Stick to the facts and evidence
Don't take me for a dork

I won't look at your hoardings
Your ads and your SM
Your bribes and empty promises
To me it's all just spam

And I will certainly not watch
A televised debate
I really have no need to feel
Uplifted by the state

Don't sell me "back to normal"
Forget the "tough on crime"
No crusher and no stardust
Just tell the truth this time

I'm tired of your platitudes
Your kicking of the cans
I want to read your policies
And understand your plans

I'm scared and eco-anxious
I need a dash of hope
And not just referenda
On managed death and dope

Don't be the handbrake all the time
Please pull out all the stops
I want a tidal wave of change
And not just a few drops

When Mother Nature kicks our bum
With fire, drought and flood
She tells us in most certain terms
To nip it in the bud

And when the great pandemic hit
Just like a lightning strike
We rediscovered care and kindness
And what life should be like

So put a cap on cows and diesel
And all that dirty s#!t
And spare me your disinformation
Since I won't fall for it

There's more that needs to disappear
Not just the plastic bag
I want that green recovery
Clean air and regen ag

Plus energy efficiency
Instead of soot and mould
Stop muddying the waters now
It's getting a bit old

And when it comes to transport
There is no "road or rail?"
There's only less emissions
If we want to prevail

Forget the aluminium smelter
We're always bound to lose
Reroute the Manapōuri power
And put it to good use

When you're talking waste and rubbish
I want to smell no rat
Bring on deposits and recycling
And make us pay for that

We are obsessed with housing
So go and take a dare
Kill off the speculation
Just tax it fair and square

Our welfare isn't doing well
And here's the reason why
It's targeted and quite the trap
Why not a UBI?

Business needs certainty
And keeping things on track
So don't campaign that if you win
You will just roll it back

Quit farming our kids like cattle
Repair the ECE
Just let our teachers do the teaching
And go for quality

Enable students overseas
To distance-learn online
So there's no need for quarantine
Remote will work just fine

Be careful with our borders
Whatever it might take
Don't burst our precious bubbles
For tourist dollars' sake

Please honour Te Tiriti
Respect that BLM
And quit the racist notion
That there is Us and Them

So this is it, my laundry list
What I think should be done
I'll go and check that I'm enrolled
Don't want to miss the fun

Just giving me the pen for free
Will certainly not do
You have to take me seriously
To make me vote for you