Binkenstein

📍In this second and final excerpt from Voices for Freedom’s appearance before the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19, Commissioner Grant Illingworth KC presses the group’s founders—Claire Deeks and Alia Bland, alongside their legal counsel Katie Ashby-Koppens — for clear answers on the legitimacy of early government responses to the pandemic. What followed was a revealing exchange that underscored VFF’s ongoing reluctance to engage directly with factual questions about COVID’s initial global impact and the rationale for New Zealand’s precautionary measures. Commissioner Illingworth demonstrates commendable patience in his attempts to anchor the discussion in specific, early-pandemic realities. His repeated clarifications — especially around whether it was legitimate for the government to take precautionary steps — are met with a frustrating blend of tangents and multiple deflections. At no point do VFF clearly or unreservedly acknowledge the legitimacy of the government’s initial response without qualifying it with an array of unrelated grievances or hypotheticals. What stands out most is the group’s inability or unwillingness to distinguish between criticism of long-term pandemic policy and acceptance of short-term emergency decision-making. The Commissioner’s questions are tightly focused on the very early stage of the crisis, yet VFF constantly shifts the conversation to later developments, lockdown duration, or legislative overreach. It seems to be a deliberate tactic to avoid conceding any ground — even where doing so would not undermine their broader critique of government overreach. Final thoughts: Despite repeated opportunities to answer straightforward questions, VFF consistently chose ambiguity over clarity. It has to be said that their reluctance to engage in open, good-faith dialogue ultimately casts doubt on the sincerity of their contribution to the inquiry.