I’m pleased to see police plan to have a presence at these vigilante checkpoints.  

But really, this should not have been allowed to happen for the last four weeks.

And I wonder if they’ve created a problem for themselves.

I totally understand the argument the Police Commissioner makes for why Maori communities want to run these checkpoints.

They feel vulnerable. Maori were harder hit by the 1918 flu pandemic. Their death rates were around eight times higher than Paheka.

Fast forward 102 years and these communities are scared history will repeat. But being scared can’t be a licence for anyone to take the law the law into their own hands, and it can’t be an excuse for the police not to do their jobs properly.

If police truly felt that vulnerable Maori communities were entitled to reassure themselves that they were safe, they should’ve taken over the checkpoints a long time ago.

Because, it’s the job of police to take everyone’s safety into consideration.  Yes, the worried community may be entitled to feel safe, but the motorist pulled over and probed about what they’re up to is also entitled to feel safe. And those photos of Mongrel Mob and Tribesman at a checkpoint in Murupara won’t make everyone feel safe.

Level three might bring some problems. With more people travelling there will surely be a temptation to establish more checkpoints.

And we’re already hearing that.  Ngati Ruanui leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer’s announced she’s planning to set up checkpoints in Taranaki too now.

• Police Commissioner defends community checkpoints

By the way, know her name?

She’s just recently been announced as the new Maori Party co-leader.

Think there might be a bit of politics at play here?

Of course that’s exactly what’s going on.

I’d bet at least part of Ngarewa-Packer’s motivation here is politically, in the same way it is partly politics motivating the government to indulge this hands-off approach from police.

The government won’t want to see a situation where police instruct Maori communities to shut down their checkpoints and then run the risk of creating an Ihumatao-like stand-off between Maori and the cops.

Ihumatao was bad enough. The PM’s still refusing to go there. The problem’s still unresolved.

The government doesn’t need a repeat, not when it wants to retain those seven critical Maori seats.

There’s politics all over this.

But politics, just like fear, isn’t a reason to ignore vigilantism.