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I have always avoided getting into the Treaty principles debate. ����

It’s just too much of a swamp to get trapped in. ����

Either you’re for David Seymour's debate on a reset, in which case some will call you a racist. ����

Or you’re against a select committee debate means the racists will call you a wokester. ����

Both of which are gross exaggerations of what’s really going down, so it’s best to just avoid it. ����

However, with the resignation of Dr Anthony Jordan from the Pharmac board, I find myself truly confused. ����

Dr Jordan quit over the Government's treaty directive. David Seymour told Pharmac it was inappropriate for the agency to keep considering the Treaty of Waitangi in the health sector.����

Dr Jordan said he "could not with good conscience" continue to work for the agency following that direction. ����

But as an outsider, I can’t understand how the treaty was factored into Pharmac’s decisions. ����

If ever there was an agency that’s work was based on need, it’s Pharmac. Everybody gets sick, everybody needs medicine. Pharmac’s job is to decide what medicines work for New Zealand.

• Pharmac director resigns over Government's Treaty of Waitangi directive

While it’s true that Māori get some illnesses more than others it’s still a need. If that need is great enough it may get funded. ����

It’s a bit like the belief that the Māori Health Authority and Te Whatu Ora’s setup meant that Māori received priority in healthcare. It’s a factor to be looked out for in identifying need but at the end of the day nobody jumped the queue. Once your need is identified you join a raceless list based on priority. ����

But Dr Anthony Jordan has now resigned, and I wonder if he’s ever considered that this will have more effect on Māori seeking equitable healthcare results from��Māori��than David Seymour's war on Treaty principles. ����

Dr Jordan is, by the way, the partner of a Labour MP and his resignation smacks to me more of political virtue signalling than standing up for Māori in the healthcare system.��

The question for Dr Jordan is: Was it better to be fighting for Māori inside the tent or sitting around outside the tent moaning and achieving nothing at all? ��