St Peter's Rugby Club Hustings Speech

SHW MAE PAWB? ALLWCH CHI’N CLYWED YN Y GEFN?

Wythnos diwethaf dysgais dydw I ddim y JFK o’r Rhath, alla i ddim yn dweud tri cant geiriau Gymraeg mewn un munud. Felly, this week I will be speaking in English.

It occurred to me yesterday that when I was an IT Consultant I would never have tried to win a client by speaking at them without interruption for 5 minutes. So I’m not going to do that again.

So here goes something a little bit different.

I want to talk with you about how we win a seat here next May. What we do afterward can wait till next week’s Zoom meeting. All my speeches will be available on my website – morganbarberrogers.cymru.

Who here is a volunteer? [Pick 3 people and ask them for whom they volunteer.]

My Mum’s motto was “BE KIND” – “BYDDWCH YN GAREDIG”.

So that’s what I try to do with my life – be kind.

I’m the non-executive director of a charity called Water Witness.

To explain simply what we do: WaterAID put in toilets and taps – we make sure the water is there and clean so those toilets and taps are useful.

We started in 2011 as a one man band and a board of trustees. We now have 45 direct employees and have set up daughter charities in Tanzania, Malawi, Kenya and Ethiopia.

We are not white saviours – we teach people how to protect their legal rights and how to enforce them, and we set up local charities to carry out the work.

Here are 2 examples – Nigeria and Malawi.

The Network of Water Rights initiative in Nigeria were worthy award winners for their tenacious advocacy and awareness raising work to help communities demand their rights.

Tigwirizane CBO in Malawi stand out for their youth engagement work on environmental protection and tackling water pollution.

We build Civil Societies. That’s our multiplier – we don’t just teach people how to fish, we teach them how to teach other people how to fish.

Our first aim in 2011 was to secure unpolluted water rights for 10 million people in Tanzania within 10 years. We exceeded it. Our 10 year aim now is to do the same thing for the whole world with the Global Declaration on Fair Water Footprints, launched with several governments, including the UK’s, at COP26.

What does that have to do with here? 

We need to rebuild civil society in our wards – the bridge between the government and the people. To do that we need to get onto the streets – all the time.

We could spend ages discussing why this has happened, reach for Gramsci and Marx, or we can just get on with fixing it.

The result in Kenfig Hill last week shows that in some places Labour are in danger of losing the vulnerable to Reform instead of us. Half of Labour’s vote shifted to Reform with only crumbs for us. They can’t all be racists.

At the last council elections in this constituency our best results were in Whitchurch and Rhiwbina, Plasnewydd and Llandaff North – 2 middle class areas and one full of students which is rapidly gentrifying.

This election isn’t about winning wards – it’s about winning votes. The middle class left can defect to us or the Greens. The Greens I know are largely ex Corbyn supporters who won’t support Plaid because they think it’s for Welsh speakers.

The people undergoing the greatest hardship from the cost of living crisis should have much more of our focus. They can be found in Plasnewydd and Adamsdown but in far greater numbers in Gabalfa, and our wards east of the Rumney.

We have neglected those wards for far too long. I was Naz’s electoral agent in the 2021 election while supporting Wil Rees in Central. Naz got next to no help to cover those wards – largely because Plaid Cardiff South was in disarray.

Who hates canvassing? Be honest. [Pick 3 people – ask them why]. 

I do. I do it, but I hate it. I hate canvassing because I go with nothing but a promise and ask for their vote.

You would never sell anything like that. No more.

I volunteer for Cardiff foodbank.

Next month I’ll also be volunteering at the council hybs in Rhiwbina.

That’s what I intend to do under Plaid’s banner – one street surgery per day – one in each ward on 14 day rotation. I want to show we care – and that “BE KIND / BYDDWCH YN GAREDIG” is our motto. That way when I canvas, I have something to offer - not just a promise of help at a future date. I can sell that.

And I want all of you to help me. The Citizens Advice Bureau offers training in all essential services. 

Gallwn – we can do it. To paraphrase JFK “Ask not what your candidates can do for you – ask what you can do for your candidates”.

That’s how we can get them to come to us. That’s how we get to win. Join me.

Please vote me number one candiate. I want to get going, and that's the best way to do it.