Oranga Tamariki CEO Chappie Te Kani to take leave for surgery

Oranga Tamariki chief executive Chappie Te Kani will be going on leave from September for surgery.

Oranga Tamariki’s chief executive Chappie Te Kani will be taking leave for a “couple of months” as he undergoes surgery.

It comes at a time when the often-maligned ministry goes through an extensive restructure with hundreds of jobs being cut amid the Government’s drive to downsize the public service.

Te Kani today said in a statement he had waited until the restructure work had sufficiently progressed before taking “planned medical leave to undergo surgery”.

“From mid-September, I will need to take a couple of months off for surgery and recovery – returning to mahi by the end of the year.

“I wanted to make sure that we had made our way through the restructure work and were ready to stand up the new structure before confirming my plans.”

Former Defence secretary Andrew Bridgman would join Te Kani’s office as acting general manager this month before taking over as acting chief executive from September.

Te Kani thanked his leadership team for supporting him and his whānau.

“I know they will welcome Andrew and lead the team while I am away.”

Last week, the Herald reported how Oranga Tamariki had confirmed 594 roles would be disestablished and 175 new roles would be created, a net reduction of 419 roles as part of the Government’s aim to reduce public service spending.

Under the agency’s initial proposal, 632 roles were proposed to be disestablished with 185 created, an overall net loss of 447 roles.

Te Kani at the time said he read “every single piece of feedback” to help form the agency’s final decision.

“As a result of the feedback, I have made a number of changes to the proposal document, with the number of disestablished roles being reduced from 447 to 419.

“These roles come from across the back-office structure of Oranga Tamariki and include a reduction in leadership team positions,” Te Kani said in a statement.

“I know my final decision will not magically fix the issues we face as an organisation. It will not automatically grow trust and confidence between our ministry and New Zealand. It will not be perfect. But change never is.”

PSA assistant secretary Fleur Fitzsimons said in June the job losses could have an impact on the lives of young people.

“It’s particularly disappointing that specialist Māori roles are still being removed as these people have unique skills working with whānau and are critical to the success of Oranga Tamariki.

“At a time of rising need and increasing pressure on families, the last thing the Government should be doing is making deep cuts to the very agency that supports children and young people,” she said.

Public sector agencies have been undertaking cost-saving exercises, putting thousands of roles on the line across government departments, ministries and agencies.

The children’s ministry is expected to finish its transition to its new structure by September.

Adam Pearse is a political reporter in the NZ Herald Press Gallery team, based at Parliament. He has worked for NZME since 2018, covering sport and health for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei before moving to the NZ Herald in Auckland, covering Covid-19 and crime.