“I have the blueprint for success as Mayor”
Venkat Raman
Auckland, May 16, 2022
Butcher-turned-property manager-turned-novelty manufacturer John Lehmann believes that Aucklanders have had enough and that it is time to run the City with greater efficiency.
The East Auckland resident said that Auckland has spun out of control in recent years.
“I remember what Auckland was and I see for what it has become. We have seen a decline in the way the City is run: Out of control spending, over-zealous bureaucrats telling us what we can and cannot do with our property and the over-inflated charges (rates, permits, development consents, dog permits) have been strangling us,” he said.
Blueprint for progress
Lehmann said that from a wonderful city, Auckland has descended to depths of depravity, where crime, rough sleepers and traffic chaos have become the norm.
“This is not a City that is living within its budget. The people who are running Auckland, waste money and keep borrowing, using people like us to underwrite loans. Had the Auckland Council been in the private sector, it would have been facing charges for reckless trading,” he said.
Lehmann believes that he is the only candidate not aligned with any political party and business interests or with any agenda.
“I am the only candidate with a blueprint and plan of what I wish to achieve,” he said..
About John Lehmann
Born and raised in Auckland, Lehmann is of English, German and Maori descent. He is a solo parent who has raised six children, including five sons and a daughter.
“Parenting is the best job that anyone can have. It is not easy being a father or a mother, but it rewards in the later year,” he said.
Lehmann left school when he was 15 years old and became an apprentice butcher.
“I hated every moment of it. It was cold, wet and uninteresting,” he said.
Six years later, at 21 years of age, he started his own Property Maintenance Company. About two years later, the venture accounted for 47 staff negotiating many contracts for large companies including Air New Zealand, Mobil, Atlantic Oil, Auckland City Council and Hospital Boards.
Muldoon Piggy Bank and more
When he was 26 years old, Lehmann manufactured the ‘Muldoon Piggy Bank,’ which became the subject of national debate. He said that he sold about 240,000 units, stated to be a record for novelty items in New Zealand.
Lehmann also produced a radio programme called, ‘Robman and Brian,’ jointly with ‘The Bad Boys of Broadcasting,’ namely, Radio Hauraki.
“It was a send-up of New Zealand politics and the then Prime Minister Sir Robert Muldoon. It syndicated throughout the country and was the highest rated programme. Around the same time, fellow DJ Kevin Black got into trouble by doing a prank. He broadcast a news item which said that an iceberg was floating in the Auckland harbour causing massive traffic congestion. The powers-that-be were not happy, but hell, it was fun.”
He was appointed as a Fishery Officer, working on a voluntary basis in the Eastern Bay. He loved the interaction with people but was saddened by how some people had the ‘take-all mindset.’
Friendship with Sir Dove Meyer Robertson
Lehmann fondly remembers his friendship with the former Mayor of Auckland, the late Sir Dove Meyer Robertson. He organised the 80th birthday of Sir Dove in his house.
“He would be rolling in his grave if he saw the state of the city today,” he said.
In 1996, Lehmann was voted President of the New Zealand Government Accountability League. In his maiden speech, Lehmann spoke of the problems faced by Auckland because of the short-sightedness of the government and the Council. He forecast problems relating to housing, schooling, roading and infostructure.
“The Council should be advising the government to stop selling passports and having new arrivals land in Auckland. I have been proven right on every point,” he said.
Following his decision to take things easy about 20 years ago, Lehmann established the Blue Sky Charity, which is involved with the University of Auckland Bio-Med unit, working on Cancer Research. He is also involved with the ‘Hot Rock,’ a sustainable geothermal project producing power from the ground.
“We have the ability to achieve a lot. We need appropriate leadership,” he said.
