Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Covid 19 Delta outbreak: Let's get Whanganui to do its bit in The 90% Project

Jacob McSweeny
By Jacob McSweeny
Assistant news director·Whanganui Chronicle·
17 Sep, 2021 05:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata.

Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata.

Leading figures around Whanganui have thrown their weight behind The 90% Project - to get most of the country vaccinated before Christmas.

The Whanganui Chronicle is part of the nationwide NZME campaign for the country to reach that 90 per cent target as a means of keeping the population safe from the Delta Covid-19 variant and to allow the economy to open further.

Te Oranganui chief executive Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata said her organisation was 100 per cent behind the goal.

She said there was a lot of talk about an 80 per cent vaccination target.

"Anything over and above that is going to benefit us and our community, long term."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

For her, getting vaccinated was an easy choice.

"I wanted to show my whānau and my organisation that it was important to be vaccinated.

"And I have mokopuna that live in my house so being vaccinated also helps to protect them."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She was concerned at a drop-off in Māori vaccination figures she had learned about.

"We're falling behind in that. We need a much more proactive approach with a range of different messaging," she said.

More specifically outside of The 90% Project, Walsh-Tapiata said her organisation was focusing on how to get younger Māori vaccinated.

"Nationally we've only recently opened up vaccination to those 30 and under and that is a significant portion of our population."

Discover more

New Zealand

Whanganui vaccination rollout reaches halfway mark

08 Sep 05:00 PM

Comment: I got the vaccine and it feels like a weight has lifted off my shoulders

10 Sep 05:00 PM

'A sensible decision': Local leaders react to alert level 2 extension

13 Sep 05:00 PM

'Get vaccinated': Demand for Covid-19 vaccine wanes

15 Sep 05:00 PM

It may become important to bring the jab to those younger people who were often busier, Walsh-Tapiata said.

"We haven't been a strong region in terms of drive-through. I know there are a range of those kinds of conversations happening," she said. "Should we have a drive-through at Pak'nSave for example?"

Steelform Whanganui coach Jason Caskey decided to get the jab because he saw it as being safe and the way forward to what the country needed: opening up.

"You should be vaccinated, it's moving forward for the country to get out of having to be in lockdowns. That's probably what we all need."

Caskey runs his own construction business and had felt the financial hurt of lockdowns.

Everyone in his family was partly or fully vaccinated.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"But in saying that, I'm not the type of person who goes around preaching to everyone else they've got to go and have a jab.

"I do strongly think we need the biggest majority of people we can having [the vaccine]."

Catholic Parish of Whanganui priest Father Vaughan Leslie​ said he had no qualms with rolling up the sleeve of his cassock.

"Yes, I'm fully vaccinated," he said.

The vaccines had proven to be effective and the Catholic Church was encouraging everyone to get vaccinated, Leslie said.

He liked The 90% Project idea.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Absolutely, I think it's very achievable. People just need to turn up to a centre. I myself didn't make any bookings - turned up at the end of the day," Leslie said of his visit to Te Oranganui's clinic at St Joseph's Hall-St Mary's Parish in Guyton St.

Leslie said he had only come across one person with doubts about the vaccine.

"My experience is people are keen to be vaccinated as soon as possible. However, people still have the choice. Nothing is mandatory."

St Peter's Anglican Church priest Paul Fletcher said he had had one jab and was about to get his second.

"Nothing dramatic to tell you, I had a good experience of it.

"I was impressed by how many people were down at the spot in Whanganui who were getting the vaccine."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He had seen negative commentary on social media about the vaccine.

"I'm for vaccination unless there's a really strong reason someone shouldn't get it. It's caring for your neighbours."

The Anglican Church was encouraging its members to get behind a "get one, give one" campaign where they donate money for vaccines to go towards people in poorer countries.

"I think they've raised a lot of money for it."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

'S*** happens': Injured motorcyclist's gracious response to being hit by car

11 Jul 08:00 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

Why Ruapehu voted against bigger water model

11 Jul 05:02 AM
Whanganui Chronicle

Search for missing man continues after car pulled from river

10 Jul 11:09 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

'S*** happens': Injured motorcyclist's gracious response to being hit by car

'S*** happens': Injured motorcyclist's gracious response to being hit by car

11 Jul 08:00 AM

A moment’s inattention by a driver at an intersection led to severe consequences.

Why Ruapehu voted against bigger water model

Why Ruapehu voted against bigger water model

11 Jul 05:02 AM
Search for missing man continues after car pulled from river

Search for missing man continues after car pulled from river

10 Jul 11:09 PM
Community group seeks to manage historic reserve

Community group seeks to manage historic reserve

10 Jul 06:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP