MAORIS AND SOCIAL SECURITY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 9, Issue 3, 4 September 1945, Page 4

MAORIS AND SOCIAL SECURITY

STRAIGHT talk was indulged b.y various speakers during the recent discussion in the House of Representatives on the vexed question on the alleged corruption of Maoris by ihe plasticity of the Social Security measures. The outsider knowing something of the evil of excess money upon the average Maori with his inhcrant Bohemianism, and ?!so at the same time the burning necessity for a little State ■recognition of their own peculiar problems, is forced to a neutral conclusion. It is only in such ( towns as our own where Pakehas have first-hand opportunities of observing for themselves, that something like a clear impression can be obtained. It is now an open secret to us that Maoris up and down the East Coast have been more than leniently dealt -with by the Social Security authorities. No one knows this better than the Maoris themselves who have shown also that they are adepts at ensuring that they receive their full share. It is also a fact that in certain instances the recipients abuse their trust in this respect, by wastefully squandering and drinking the proceeds of State assistance. The other side of the picture however does not reflect any great credit upon the mental understanding of the Pakeha Government which consciously perpetrated such a system. The fair question to ask is this—howmany Pakehas if given the same chances and sympathetic encouragement by the authorities would not exploit the opening to the full? We venture to say there would be very few! Thinking Maoris will openly admit the growing corruption which Social Security is sowing amongst the members of their race. They counter that the fault is not with the Maoris themselves, for the human element is stronger there than with the Pakehas, but rather with administrative powers who have deliberately adopted a policy of indulgence which makes It, comparatively easy for any Maori to score at the expense of the ratepayers as a whole. The remedy is obvious.