Phil Goff
Auckland, October 4, 2021
“Mr Tamaki is being grossly irresponsible in telling his followers not to get vaccinated”- Phil Goff
(RNZ Photo by Rebekah Parsons-King)
I was not impressed when I found out that Brian Tamaki, Leader of Destiny Church, was planning a mass rally at the Domain to protest the lockdown.
Firstly, under health orders, large rallies are illegal. They are potentially super-spreader events and more so in this case because not many of the people attending will have been vaccinated, because they have been told by their Church leaders that they don’t need to.
Secondly, I hope that the Police do decide to prosecute the organisers of the rally. No one is above the law. Hundreds of thousands of Aucklanders are conscientiously trying to do the right thing by following the rules and getting vaccinated.
They are doing that because they know that is the best way for us to stamp out the virus and not have to go back into level 4 lockdown.
Vaccination the best option
Studies have shown that about 95% of people who received both doses of the vaccine are protected against getting seriously ill. It is the best way of protecting ourselves our families and the community.
So, Mr Tamaki is being grossly irresponsible in telling his followers not to get vaccinated and then calling them altogether in what could be a super-spreader event.
I am mindful of the comments of the intensive care unit nurse Jenny McGee, who nursed Boris Johnson when he was seriously ill. She spoke movingly of the desperately sick people she nursed who had not got vaccinated but as they like dying of the virus pleaded to be vaccinated when it was too late.
All of us want to see an end to lockdowns and to achieve that we need over 90% of our population to be protected against the virus. So far, over 84% of Aucklanders have got their first dose and in some community communities that level is 94%.
Welcoming Summer
In others, however, it is still much too low. What about efforts in coming weeks need to be around encouraging and creating opportunities for people to get to their vaccinations.
So please take the time to encourage your family, friends and workmates to do so. We all want a normal summer where we can relax and meet with others and enjoy ourselves.
That can only happen when it is safe to do so to avoid our hospital system being overwhelmed by people who are sick with the virus and having to be in intensive care.
Thank you for doing the right thing so that we can have a summer to look forward.
Phil Goff is Mayor of Auckland. He writes a regular Column in Indian Newslink.
