A government inquiry has found that agencies responsible for safeguarding personal Census and Covid-19 vaccination data collected at Manurewa Marae failed to implement appropriate protections, increasing the risk of misuse.
The investigation, ordered by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in June last year, revealed that Stats NZ, the Ministry of Health, and Health New Zealand lacked sufficient safeguards to prevent potential privacy breaches and conflicts of interest, leading to the temporary suspension of new contracts with Te Pou Matakana, the Waipareira Trust, and Manurewa Marae.
The controversy stems from allegations that personal data was used to target Māori voters in the Tāmaki Makaurau electorate, though this was outside the inquiry’s scope and has been referred for further investigation. Takutai Tarsh Kemp, who was the Marae’s chief executive at the time, later won over Labour’s Peeni Henare in the electorate by a narrow margin.
As a result, Government Statistician Mark Sowden will step down next month.
Privacy Commissioner Michael Webster highlighted the need for stronger data protection standards, with public confidence in privacy protections reportedly declining. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner will now conduct a further review into the handling and potential misuse of the data.
Well someone had to be thrown under the apartheid bus eh!
Playing the race card is unhelpful.
Sorry, but these elite grifters are not Maori. Maori have mana.
Mana is a source of both personal and collective strength, pride and identity. Mishandled, it becomes the bearer of shame, ridicule and embarrassment. If mana allows to walk tall, then it also casts a long shadow of truth and humility.
Also, multiple New Zealand Government departments are corrupt, especially if run by people clearly still developing thier statesmanship and humanitaristic values. BTW: Proving digital ID will NEVER be safe because there is no trail of documentation of accesss or theft.
The only people with real mana here are the brave whistleblowers and the likes of Brian Tamaki who have collected evidence and made formal complaints.
One might be part of tribal background, but tribal feuds and nepotism are part of primitive ‘political’ culture, irrespective of race.
When will real Maori speak up? We are all in this together.