Grandfather of murdered Masterton girls speaks out

12.30pm

MASTERTON - The grandfather of two murdered Masterton schoolgirls has hit out today in the wake of two official reports at the treatment meted out to him and his family.

Alan Aplin, grandfather of Saliel Aplin and Olympia Jetson who were stabbed to death by their stepfather Bruce Howse, said the finger was being pointed at those who were involved at grassroots level, instead of those higher up the ladder.

This applied particularly to social workers.

"These social workers come to homes, take notes and return to their office to report to their superiors," Mr Aplin said.

"They can only do what their superiors tell them to do, so why are they now being persecuted?"

Mr Aplin said he had had disagreements with social workers while he has had grandchildren in his care but was still defending those who had to do the work in the field.

He said orders from above had resulted in CYF taking both the now-dead girls and one of their brothers out of his care and putting them back with their mother Charlene and Howse.

"That's what I'm bloody wild about. I had been told in 1994 that while Howse was living with Charlene the kids would never be returned."

At one time Mr Aplin and his wife May had been caring for five of their grandchildren and had gone for at least six weeks without any help from Social Welfare in feeding and helping to buy clothes for the children.

Mr Aplin said it was only after he had a session with then Wairarapa MP Wyatt Creech that the department was forthcoming with cash.

"I had a long talk with Mr Creech on the Saturday and on Monday morning all this money suddenly appeared in my bank account."

He said in the aftermath of official reports from both CYF and the Commissioner for Children being made public this week, people were intimating that his own children had a violent upbringing and hadn't done well for themselves.

"That's bloody wrong.

"My eldest daughter Mori has just returned from Norway, she's done all right, Alan has his own farm in Taihape, David works in a bank in Wellington and is also a qualified hairdresser, and Tina, who has three kids, is about to get remarried.

"Charlene is the third to youngest, she was given every chance."

He said it was true that since the murder of the two girls Charlene has had four other children taken from her.

One is living with him and the other three have been fostered out.

Mr Aplin said this had arisen after one of the children turned up at school with bruises and CYF were notified.

Mr Aplin also fired a broadside at Masterton Mayor Bob Francis and Masterton District Council.

He said Mr Francis had "promised plenty and done nothing".

"He promised he would get Charlene another house but she had to return to the Kippenberger house where the kids were killed.

"Masterton District Council has continued to load her unpaid rates with penalties every since the girls died. She owes about $1500 that she is paying off slowly."

Wairarapa MP Georgina Beyer said today the release of reports into the murders signalled an end to the finger-pointing and the start of a new move to improve the lot of children.

The two reports were comprehensive and it was time to draw a line and move on.

"There were some issues in the processes and practices in social workers in our Masterton office at the time. There's no running away from that."

She said it wasn't "altogether useful" to engage in further finger-pointing at CYF, police, schools, the community and news media over the death of the girls.

"We need to take all that on board and then move forward. We as a community are taking the initiative."

She said Wairarapa's anti-violence campaign, Rise Above It, was making gains in the community.

"If there's one thing out of all these together is there is a much greater public awareness and determination to face these issues."

Ms Beyer said now was the time to act to stamp out family violence.

"People are impassioned at the moment for a particular tragedy. What we need to do is harness that, not just get all angry for a week or so and then leave it to someone else."

Masterton mayor Bob Francis said CYF's lack of senior management in the town contributed to their problems in dealing with the Aplin family in the lead-up to the murders of sisters Saliel and Olympia.

"There was a senior manager in place here prior to this incident. CYF decided to rationalise some of those positions. In the lead-up (to the Aplin murders), senior management was run from Wellington."

Mr Francis said before the murders he had written to then CYF chief executive Jackie Pivac raising concerns about the removal of the senior manager in Masterton.

"We did lack leadership and that did contribute to the problems. I think it's unfair the pressure that has been placed on local staff."

CYF chief social worker Shannon Pakura's report did acknowledge the difficulties created for staff by changing management arrangements for Masterton, but questioned the degree of effect this had on professional practice."

Mr Francis said responsibility for the tragedy could not rest solely with CYF.

"That's unfair. They've accepted there were some issues and have addressed it.

"There does have to be some ownership here. The family and the community does have to accept some ownership and we shouldn't lose sight of that."

- WAIRARAPA TIMES-AGE (MASTERTON)