Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Gordon Campbell | Parliament TV | Parliament Today | News Video | Crime | Employers | Housing | Immigration | Legal | Local Govt. | Maori | Welfare | Unions | Youth | Search

 

F Is For Fail: Grading The Ministry Of Education’s Flood Response

By Tim Wilson, Executive Director, Maxim Institute*

School, finally, is back this week in the nation’s largest city to howls of relief from many parents and (one hopes) some students also. Yet the resumption of normal service shouldn’t obscure a curious inconsistency. The past few weeks have shown wildly divergent responses to authority. Let me explain.

Exhibit A: Mayor Wayne Brown. Much agitation, column and social media space has been exercised by the mayor’s leadership/communications skills (or lack thereof) during the recent floods in Tamaki Makaurau. His grudging apology sauntered into the public square far too late to palliate any of that, and calls for his head have continued.

Community advocate Dave Letele said the mayor was ‘out of his depth’ and should go; ditto TodayFM host Tova O’Brien et al. A petition to this effect amassed more than 25,000 signatures in a week.

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

Fair enough. Brown admitted he was slow to respond, and his fights with the media quickly became a side-show for the saturated city’s travails.

How odd then that there’s been no corresponding witch hunt through the halls of Exhibit B: The Ministry of Education. That organisation’s post-flood miscommunicated edict that schools, tertiary institutes, and early childhood centres throughout Auckland should remain closed caught almost everyone off-guard. It came the day before students were due to return from the Christmas holidays.

Here’s a quote from one principal to students and parents: “We are incredulous that this information is in complete contrast to the information provided to Auckland principals earlier this morning, and the closure instruction has not been sent directly to us at school… We only learned about the order at 3.30pm today via the media.”

There are 556 schools in the Auckland region. Keep in mind that the number affected by flooding was twenty.

More than 270,000 secondary and primary students were kept home. How many parents had to change plans? What was the cost to them, to the businesses they work at or run? Given the revelation that a horrifying 100,000+ Kiwi kids are skipping classes each day, what message does this send to children (and parents) about the importance of attending school?

Now the Ministry may say that it was merely doing the bidding of the National Emergency Management Agency. But no matter who came up with the idea, the underlying assumption is that parents, schools, and communities cannot make decisions on their own. Two days later, the edict was reversed. Most schools stuck with the new return date. Given the confusion, why wouldn’t they?

So to the hardest word in the English language for some to utter: Sorry. Wayne Brown said it in a dilatory manner and was duly castigated. The Ministry apologised to principals, blaming IT for “slow communication.” But no apology was reported to parents or students. There has been some criticism of the Ministry’s behaviour but no corresponding deluge of calls for those responsible to be made accountable.

The silence is deafening. Why do we expect so little from our bureaucrats?

*Maxim Institute is an independent think tank working to promote the dignity of every person in New Zealand by standing for freedom, justice, compassion, and hope.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines



Gordon Campbell: On Dune 2, And Images Of Islam


Depictions of Islam in Western popular culture have rarely been positive, even before 9/11. Five years on from the mosque shootings, this is one of the cultural headwinds that the Muslim community has to battle against. Whatever messages of tolerance and inclusion are offered in daylight, much of our culture tends to be hostile to Islam when we’re sitting in the dark, with popcorn.
Any number of movie examples come to mind, beginning with Rudolf Valentino’s role (over a century ago) as the romantic Arab hero in The Sheik...
More


 
 


Government: One-stop Shop Major Projects On The Fast Track

The Coalition Government’s new one-stop-shop fast track consenting regime for regional and national projects of significance will cut red tape and make it easier for New Zealand to build the infrastructure and major projects needed to get the country moving again... More

ALSO:


Government: GPS 2024: Over $20 Billion To Get Transport Back On Track
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has released the draft Government Policy Statement (GPS) on Land Transport, outlining the Coalition Government’s plan to build and maintain a transport system that enables people to get to where they need to go quickly and safely... More

ALSO:

Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.