Money paid for the PM's cast will boost an eye-care charity. Photo / Supplied
The man who paid $18,500 for John Key's plaster cast in a online auction says his wife was initially "aghast" at his suggestion that he bid for it.
The proceeds of the auction, which closed at the weekend on Trade Me, will go to the Solomon Islands work
of the Fred Hollows Foundation, which runs blindness prevention programmes in Third World countries.
Mr Key broke his arm in two places when he fell while leaving the stage at a Chinese New Year function in Auckland three weeks ago.
His cast was signed by Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and other Pacific leaders.
The auction winner, businessman Ganesh Cherian, said his wife was initially opposed to the idea of putting in a bid. "But I sat down and talked to her, and we decided it was what we wanted to do. We had not expected to win the auction - we thought we would be outbid.
"In my business - making memorial headstones - I have a lot of Pacific Island clients and I liked the idea that people from the Solomons would benefit from the money.
"It is not really about the cast. It was an opportunity to bless other people. I think we live in an extremely lucky part of the world, and I wanted to give at a time when people are otherwise constricting their spending."
Mr Cherian said he hoped another business would buy the cast from him, with that money also going to the charity.
Mr Key assured the buyer, who also gets to have morning tea with the PM, that the cast was well preserved. "It is still at home. I am not keeping it in the safe, but it is still in very good condition."
The Fred Hollows Foundation said proceeds would go towards funding two eye surgery visits to remote parts of the Solomons. Each visit would involve up to 440 consultations and 100 sight-restoring surgeries.
Executive director Carmel Williams said: "We are extremely grateful to the Prime Minister ... and the winning bidder. It's wonderful to be able to fund additional surgical team visits."
