Porirua schools help parents enrol
The pupils at Cannons Creek School can’t vote, but they can tell you why you should.
There are things they want in their Porirua East community, and 10-year-old Richard Afamasaga says it’s up to the adults to demand them.
He rattles off his list: shoes, raincoats, houses for everybody, healthy food, safe roads, colourful shops and houses.
‘‘The only way people can get that is by voting, even if they think it’s rubbish.’’
At least three schools in the city’s east have become enrolment hubs for their community as part of a campaign encouraging children to convince their families to vote.
At Cannons Creek School, a stack of enrolment forms sits by the office and staff are on hand to help parents enrol, children can translate if needed.
The office computer can be used for parents to check if they’re enrolled and the phone is available for those who don’t have one of their own.
Richard’s mum already voted, he said, but that didn’t stop him from talking about it.
‘‘I pretty much talk to every adult I can about voting.’’
He had only met one politician so far but had enjoyed a school trip to Parliament. ‘‘I thought it looked pretty rich.’’
Breana Nepia Te-Hau said there were plenty of reasons her community didn’t vote and, like Richard, she listed them.
‘‘No technology, no car, no petrol, no computer, no phone, they think it doesn’t matter.’’
Making voting easy was important and schools were perfect places to do that, the 10-year- old said. ‘‘That way they can use our computers or our phones, it’s pretty simple.’’
What wasn’t simple were the complex reasons that stopped the school’s parents from voting, principal Ruth O’Neill said.
With families from around the world, even filling out a form could be a hurdle.
‘‘Language and even the ability to read is the other thing that prevents them from voting.
‘‘They’re not comfortable, they don’t know about the situation and they don’t know about the process.’’
The way to get parents involved was by getting kids involved, she said.
‘‘They don’t have internet at home, they have their phone and their phone doesn’t have any money on it.’’
An Electoral Commission spokeswoman said it was encouraging to see schools involved in the democratic process.
‘‘It means their students will have a better understanding of the voting system when the time comes for them to enrol and vote.’’ ‘‘Shoes and jackets for everyone.’’ ‘‘Healthy food for people.’’ ‘‘More colourful things in Cannons Creek.’’ ‘‘A safe road outside the school.’’ ‘‘A school for special needs kids.’’ ‘‘Houses for people.’’ ‘‘Help people who are begging. Give them $2.’’