October 07, 2020
Maori commissioner ready to use persuasion
The new Assistant Māori Commissioner for Children believes she and Commissioner Andrew Becroft will make a powerful combination.
Glenis Philip-Barbara, who has a background in social work as well as being a former chief executive of the Māori Language Commission, is the first person to hold the role.
She says even though the commission is a monitoring and advisory body it can have a huge influence on the way tamariki are treated.
"I don’t underestimate the power of influence at all and I think between us, we can be quite persuasive. It is about helping people join the dots and do the right thing for tamariki and for me that all sheets back to every tamariki having a whānau they belong to, that belongs to them, a context to grow in that is healthy and can be sustained over generations," Ms Philip-Barbara says.
She is keen to hear the whakaaro of the children about what they want for their futures.