Leading from the front issuu

Te Taiwhenua’s vision for a Child Friendly City is one
where all our children feel safe and can play safely and
that they have parents who can give them the quality
of life they deserve. That our children can grow up in
a Child Friendly City that provides them with all their
needs around education, health and housing and their
mum and dad are in good employment.
Currently a lot of our tamariki feel unsafe and that has
to change. The latest crime stats for Napier are damning.
Flaxmere’s crime stats have gone down because
they’ve adopted a community-friendly Kaupapa. They’re
all in there working together and people like Henare
O’Keefe, Peleti Oli and Les Hokianga are helping drive
this, whereas Napier’s crime stats continue to trend up.
We have to work across government, across agencies,
Taiwhenua, and organisations such as the Trust to put in
place a Child Friendly City strategy that actually makes
a difference.
In terms of achieving a Child Friendly City Pat has experienced
many blocks over the years while he’s been
trying to change things. Going forward it’s all about
working with what we’ve already got. We don’t need
to reinvent the wheel but we need to make the wheels
stronger and sturdier to achieve outcomes because at
the moment, there are a lot of people out there with the
greatest of intentions but change is incremental. More
resources have to be given to organisations who can
make a difference on the ground with the whānau —
something Pat has been advocating for years.
We have a new Mayor and Council CEO in place now
but we need the Council to step up and bring some key
people on board to focus on this Kaupapa. The Council
needs to make friends with central government and
work together so we can get foot soldiers on the ground,
checking that our families are safe, okay and thriving.
The Council cannot keep saying it is not their role, or
that it’s the role of central government and the community.
I know there’s a lot of funding going into Maraenui
for social services but I’m keen to see what is being
achieved with the funding and how we can be more effective.
There’s a lot of mahi going on with programmes
that are game changing. Annie Aranui from the Ministry
of Social Development supports many programs including
Whare A IO, Te Kupenga Hauora, Kings Force Health,
Te Ropu ā Iwi and the Taiwhenua; they’re all in there
working with many others to make a difference.
Pat makes a huge difference to the community and Te
Ao Māori as well. He religiously goes to the Napier court
and holds his office outside The Pie Man in Maraenui.
He continues to do his work here, advocating on behalf
of our people; on behalf of families who have nothing,
being kind, caring and giving them a voice.
Pat is loved by our people and by our community and
we will forever support him and the mahi he continues
to do.
Aroha Mai, Aroha Atu, Aroha Nui, Pat
Napier Pilot City Trust – for a kinder, fairer city 157