Debbie Ngarewa-Packer: Many bold ideas are born in garages

OPINION:

In 1998 Larry Page and Sergey Brin set up in Susan Wojcickis’ garage — it started off as a college project at Stanford and now, 20 years later, Google is the biggest internet giant on the planet. Nike, Apple, Microsoft, Harley Davidson, Hewlett-Packard, Amazon, Walt Disney Co. and Mattel all started out in garages. To be fair, Nike didn’t even have a garage to start with.

There are unique stories of stamina and going against the grain, great stories to hearten the value of the humble garage but also to what can be achieved if you are in an environment that encourages your potential. No one believed in Google’s founders, and yet they changed our world in a way never heard of before. Our rangatahi in South Auckland, in fact everywhere, have the same potential and genius.

So, it was hugely disappointing watching National leader Chris Luxon in his recent interview with Chris Lynch where he was asked how we should stop young people from joining gangs in the first place. “If you’re sitting in a garage in South Auckland with your two brothers and you’re thinking about life and where you’re going ... the gang life looks pretty attractive” was his reply.

This is a leader who is asking to become Aotearoa’s prime minister. A leader who is promising to provide solutions for the future prosperity of our nation, who proposes he is going to address the cost-of-living crisis, child poverty, homelessness, crime, education and unemployment.

This is a leader who is also a Member of Parliament for East Tamaki, which includes Ōtara, yet he seems to lack any empathy and relatability to the strengths and richness of South Auckland communities. The interview seems to define his character as being someone who simply doesn’t believe in the potential of rangatahi and South Auckland. That’s unacceptable.

We are a nation whose growing population is Māori and Pasifika people, 70per cent of whose populations are under 40 years old. We need to know that we have a leader who is prepared to serve all communities, to reach in and connect with youth from all realms of society. To fail this would be to condemn us to a vanilla flavour, which misses out on the magic of all our youth do.

Christopher Luxon needs to realise garages are places of inspiration and hard work, not venues for planning criminal escapades. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Ema Tavola’s opinion piece for the Spinoff “In celebration of my South Auckland garage” states the South Auckland garages she knew most of her adult life were places of “safety, sanctuary, deep creativity and transformation”, highlighting the artists, and the numerous events they fostered. It’s a story I could relate to as a wahine from a large Māori whānau, the events, the band practises, the warmth, the community.

That’s the point that Luxon completely misses. Not everyone plans to land in crime, not every whānau congregating in a garage is plotting how to be in trouble, and not everyone in South Auckland wants to see their rangatahi end up in gangs.

There is a growing narrative in Aotearoa: the us and them, the division of left and right, and no more is it evident than when we have policy and leadership that promotes stereotypes instead of encouraging potential, but as Minister for Pacific Peoples Aupito William Sio points out, if you do not know South Auckland, how could you understand its potential.

In August, I spent three days in Samoa to celebrate 60 years of independence with the Prime Minister, National & Act Party leaders. On the last day we met with the Samoan Cabinet for an open discussion, and I remember thinking I’ve never seen our Government’s Cabinet room and wondering how this cross-party engagement would play out at home.

I was impressed with Samoan Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mata’afa, whose priority was ensuring her people were able to reach their full potential. She knew well their important contribution to Aotearoa’s economy and loved her people equally whether here in Aotearoa or there in Samoa.

She could relate to their aspirations, knew full well the barriers and was prepared to advocate to remove them.

We need to know that any leader trialling to be our prime minister is prepared to see, hear and feel people in all areas of Aotearoa, and fight to remove the barriers that restrain them, and who is prepared to lead policy development that recognises the vibrance of our communities.

If Luxon is serious about applying for the top job in this country, he needs upskilling.

Debbie Ngarewa-Packer is an MP and the co-leader of Te Pāti Māori.