Efeso Collins

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Efeso Collins
Member of the Auckland Council for Manukau
Assumed office
1 November 2016
Preceded byArthur Anae
Personal details
Political partyLabour

Fa'anānā Efeso Collins is a New Zealand politician who is an Auckland Councillor of Samoan and Tokelauan descent. He was raised in Otara, and is the youngest of six children. He is married to Fia Collins, and has one daughter.[1] Collins carries the Samoan matai title of Fa’anana from the village of Satufia, Satupaitea, Savai'i.[2]

Education[]

Efeso Collins studied at University of Auckland, gaining a Bachelor of Education and later a Master of Education. He also served as the first Polynesian Auckland University Students' Association president.[3]

Political career[]

Auckland Council
Years Ward Affiliation
2016–2019 Manukau Labour
2019–present Manukau Labour

Auckland Council[]

At the 2013 Auckland elections, Collins was elected to the Ōtara-Papatoetoe Local Board and became the Chairperson.[4][5] He contested the Labour party candidate selection for the Manukau East seat before the 2014 general election, but ultimately Jenny Salesa was selected.[6][7]

At the 2016 Auckland elections, Collins was elected to the Auckland Council, replacing Arthur Anae, who didn't seek re-election.[8] He was sworn in as a councillor for the Manukau ward on 1 November.[9]

During the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand, Collins called for the New Zealand Government on 27 August 2021 to grant an amnesty to people who had overstayed their visas in order to encourage members of the Pasifika community to come forward for COVID-19 tests. The then Health Minister Chris Hipkins has earlier reassured the Pasifika community that the Government would not use any information collected during testing for immigration purposes.[10]

On 25 July 2021, Collins disclosed that he and his family had received a death threat on 19 June in response to his comments criticising TVNZ's Police Ten 7 programme for its negative depiction of the Māori and Pasifika communities. Despite the threats to him and his family, Collins resolved to continue his involvement in politics.[11]

2022 Auckland Mayoral Election[]

In January 2022 Collins announced he would be running for Mayor of Auckland in 2022.[12][13]

Family[]

Collins has a wife named Fia Collins and the couple have a family together.[11]

References[]

  1. ^ "About Us". The Daily Blog. The Daily Blog. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  2. ^ "About Us - Efeso Collins". The Daily Blog. The Daily Blog.
  3. ^ Maude, Simon (7 November 2016). "What it means to be Samoan on Auckland Council". Stuff. Archived from the original on 20 April 2016. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Supermarket deal paves way for expansion of Old Papatoetoe mall". Panuku.co.nz. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  5. ^ Opeta Elika (11 October 2013). "Vote Efeso Collins" – via YouTube.
  6. ^ "Labour to select candidate for Manukau East". Scoop.
  7. ^ Roberts, Sarah (28 February 2014). "Labour picks Manukau East candidate". Stuff.
  8. ^ "Labour sweeps Manukau Ward". Stuff. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  9. ^ "Auckland councillor Efeso Collins claims discrimination at swearing in ceremony". New Zealand Herald. 3 November 2016.
  10. ^ "Auckland councillor Efeso Collins calls for amnesty for people with expired visas". Radio New Zealand. 27 August 2020. Archived from the original on 27 August 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  11. ^ a b Latif, Justin (25 July 2021). "Auckland councillor Fa'anana Efeso Collins receives bomb threat after police TV show criticism". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  12. ^ Niall, Todd (26 January 2022). "Auckland mayoralty: Efeso Collins confirms bid for the job". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 January 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  13. ^ Manhire, Toby (26 January 2022). "'I think it's time': Efeso Collins commits to running for Auckland mayor". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 27 January 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
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