Ruthless-Empire killing: CEOs of child support agencies say Oranga Tamariki is not up to the job

The chair of the Whanau Ora Commissioning Agency says Oranga Tamariki is not up to the job and fears more children under three will keep dying if issues are not addressed.

This comes after the uncle of slain toddler Ruthless-Empire revealed he had contacted Oranga Tamariki in December, asking for the child to be uplifted over significant concerns he had about the way he was treated, believing he was in “danger” as well as the “disgusting” conditions he was living in.

“Here we go again,” Whanau Ora Commissioning Agency chair Merepeka Raukawa-Tait told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking.

Ruthless-Empire died in hospital.

Asked if she thought Oranga Tamariki was up to it as an agency, Raukawa-Tait said “I don’t think so.”

“I have no doubt they’re trying to do their best, but these things happen so often.”

Raukawa-Tait says she receives calls each week from concerned parents or grandparents, fearing something will happen to their children.

Too often she hears that Oranga Tamariki cannot intervene until an incident actually happens, she said.

Whanau Ora Commissioning Agency chair Merepeka Raukawa-Tait.

“Well, hell no, that’s quite wrong.

“To be honest, I’m, I’m at a loss these days.

“I look at it and I think, you know, we’re going to have children that will live and die before they are three years of age because no one actually is prepared to either confront and have those hard conversations or actually say we need to monitor these children.

“If it can’t be done by a government agency, then it has to be done by somebody else.”

Raukawa-Tait said responsibility also falls on families.

“I don’t think it is going to end unless people actually take seriously what happens in their home.

“We know that for every child that is killed in New Zealand that six adults know that something is happening to that child.”

Child Matters CEO Jane Searle.

Child Matters chief executive Jane Searle says it is concerning how many complaints to Oranga Tamariki slip through the cracks.

She told Newstalk ZB’s Kate Hawkesby that out of 70,000 complaints a year, just 38,000 concerning 51,000 children were assessed or investigated.

Searle added that it was incredible to also know that the agency did not hold data on the number of children who died as a result of abuse or neglect.

She agreed that the case of Ruthless-Empire was another example of the dire need for reform.

“We need to remember that each one of these deaths is completely preventable,” said Searle.

“We have known for a long time that Oranga Tamariki is not fit for purpose.”

Caitlan Johnston is a breaking news reporter based in Waikato. She joined the Herald in 2022.