Dear Editor, It was with disbelief that most New Zealanders watched on the evening Television 1 News, Sunday night (NZ time), the story about your Prime Minister, Mark Brown, intention to make a break from New Zealand.

Going by the remarks made by some Rarotongans it is something most Cook islanders will never want or vote for. I imagine most South Pacific Island nations, if not all, would value very highly to be New Zealand citizens.

The benefits to the Cook Islands of being New Zealand citizens are many and all Cook Islanders know this. Ask the citizens of Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and many others, and we know what their answer would be.

So exactly what is Mark Brown’s agenda here? Is there more to this than meets the eye. Is this the thin edge of the wedge of something similar to another Pacific Island nation signing up with a very big and powerful neighbour? Could we say that hovering around this matter is a series of political thunder clouds of a highly ominous nature.

Gerry Mitten

Riccarton,

Christchurch

New Zealand