Te Pāti Māori Co-leaders Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer are today calling on the Government to give Māori health providers the funding, data and decision-making authority to lead the remainder of the COVID-19 vaccination programme, including taking vaccination funding off DHBs and giving it directly to Māori providers.

“Our message to the Government is very clear – step aside and let Māori lead. The survival of our people depends on it,” says Mr Waititi.

“Government outreach to our people isn’t working, and is actually making it harder. They must hand over all necessary resources, data and power to tangata whenua, and then step aside and let our people lead.

“Last week we met with Minister of Health Andrew Little and demanded the release of all relevant vaccination data to Māori providers. It is a disgrace that this still hasn’t happened and while they are leading vaccine efforts on the ground, Whānau Ora are having to take civil action in the courts to access the data they need,” said Mr Waititi.

“Right around the country DHBs are undermining the Māori response. We are calling on the Government to take the vaccination cash off DHBs and give it direct to Māori providers on the ground,” said Mrs Ngarewa-Packer.

“What we are seeing is the direct impact of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her Government continually ignoring the advice of our Māori health experts since the first outbreak last year.

“The fact that rural Māori communities in Te Tai Rāwhiti are having to do online crowdfunding to get mobile vaccination clinics shows how this effort has been set up to fail. For us in Taranaki, our DHB refused us mobile clinics up until there was pressure put on the PM by media at her daily press conference. Government knew about this for months, why are they ignoring Māori leaders?,” said Mrs Ngarewa-Packer.

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