July 13, 2021
Gang meth scheme ideal for experimental fund
A social activist who has been working with gang whanau for decades says Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern did the right thing by signing off on a methamphetamine recovery programme run by the Mongrel Mob.
National has attacked the decision, saying the Proceeds of Crime Fund should be spent on victims rather than gangs.
But Black Power life member Dennis O’Reilly, who in the 1970s and 80s worked with National Party Prime Minister Rob Muldoon on initiatives to find work and other support for gang members, says gang members and their whanau are also likely to be victims of crime.
He says the fund is specifically designed to allow for risky and experimental programmes, which are needed for such a complex and difficult problem.
"You can be cynical as hell – we are dealing with the Mongrel Mob and I suppose there is that North American Indian saying about the person who has two dogs fighting within them, one is an evil dog and one is a good dog and which one will prevail, and the wise man's answer is 'the one that you feed.' The right one is being fed here," he says.
Mr O’Reilly says the $2.75 million price tag over four years for the programme based on a central Hawke’s Bay marae sounds reasonable for a programme involving people with specialist qualifications who may or may not have gang affiliations.
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