Rawiri Waititi: Stomach staple operation saved me and added years to my life

Rawiri Waititi, co-leader of Te Pāti Māori, says a stomach staple could've saved his life and he wants increased Māori access to the procedure. Photo / George Novak

Rawiri Waititi has opened up about his life-changing decision to undergo a stomach bypass procedure to reduce the risk of a hereditary heart condition.

The Te Pāti Māori co-leader says the $24,000 cost was covered by his health insurance, but he’s calling on the Government to ensure access to what he says are life-saving procedures is not limited by financial circumstances.

“I believe it’s done that for [me]. It’s added years on to my life” Waititi told Waatea.

“The Government needs to look at it for those - especially Māori - who may have [a higher susceptibility] to these illnesses”. he said.

About one in three adults in Aotearoa are considered obese, with higher rates present in Māori and Pasifika communities.

Te Whatu Ora - Health New Zealand has conceded Māori rates are largely attributable to colonisation and urbanisation.

Shorter lives because of cost

Waititi says lower wages and a lack of private healthcare availability for whānau Māori create an inequity that kills.

“We shouldn’t be living shorter lives because we can’t afford a bypass,” he said.

Te Whatu Ora and Te Aka Whai Ora, the Māori Health Authority, have been approached for comment.

Waititi is far from the first politician to sell the virtues of bariatric surgery.

In 2018, former National Party deputy leader Paula Bennett revealed she had undergone gastric bypass surgery.

“I hope it sends a positive message out there to other people with weight or health problems that this may be a solution for them,” Bennett told NZME’s Ricardo Simich.

In 2010, then-Education Minister Anne Tolley and Māori Party MP Rahui Katene both confirmed they had undergone the operation, which shrinks the stomach and dulls the appetite.