New Zealand opposition leader Simon Bridges has been secretly recorded calling one of his own lawmakers “fucking useless” and making other questionable remarks, as turmoil in the conservative National Party escalated yesterday.
Bridges said he has apologized to Legislator Maureen Pugh for making the inappropriate comment, adding that he has no intention of resigning after a former close colleague accused him of corruption, initiated a police investigation and posted the embarrassing telephone conversation on Facebook.
The events of this week have been startling to many New Zealanders, who are accustomed to a restrained brand of politics.
Observers say that such venomous infighting is almost unprecedented.
Lawmaker Jami-Lee Ross on Tuesday resigned after saying Bridges was corrupt because he hid a donation from a wealthy Chinese businessman by arranging for it to be split into smaller amounts to avoid it being publicly disclosed.
Bridges denies the charge.
Ross yesterday went to the police with what he claimed was evidence before posting the conversation with Bridges.
During the conversation, Ross tells Bridges that two men, including Zhang Yikun (張乙坤), have donated NZ$100,000 (US$65,820) and had expressed interest in having another ethnic Chinese lawmaker.
“Two Chinese would be nice, but would it be one Chinese and one Filipino, or what do we do?” Bridges asks.
He talks about a possible “mercenary cull” and how he would like two or three lawmakers to leave, including Pugh.
Bridges said that while he might have been blunt, he was simply trying to reflect growing diversity in the community.
“I’m not perfect, as that conversation shows. Perhaps I’m something of a rough diamond sometimes,” Bridges said. “But I sleep well at night because I’ve got my integrity.”
He said Ross had been trying to set him up and might have been secretly recording him for months.
“He’s a terrible person,” Bridges said.
Ross said he believes Bridges had broken electoral laws and had handed over evidence to police.
He said he recorded the conversation because he was uncomfortable about the donations.
In a statement, police said they had received a complaint and would provide any relevant updates in a timely manner.
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