No Limits for Nathan
W(h)anganui Mayor Michael Laws called him “an ignorant moron.” He told the then Leader of the Opposition John Key “I want the job you're going for.” His email address starts with ‘primeminister2b.’ At 14, he was one of the youngest ever to organise a petition for Parliament and at present has one tabled before the Government Administration Committee.
Nathan Ngatai is a 17 year old with an exceptional vision of the world around him. His passion and commitment carry through wherever he sees a need to be filled. He is interested in everything and the more he extends his knowledge, the more he discovers to be passionate about. As a teenager, his interests in youth affairs are high on his list, a list that sees him involved as a volunteer anywhere he can help someone out. Where others might see obstacles, Nathan goes ahead anyway.
Nathan’s recently tabled petition opposing nudity in public places was prompted by Boobs on Bikes being held in Queen Street. “People just walking around Queen Street would have no choice but to see it and I didn’t think that was right,” says Nathan. Michael Laws’ derisory comment about Nathan, whom he has never met, was prompted when Boobs on Bikes was held in W(h)anganui.
Preparing a petition is a complex process, but no problem for Nathan. He is a firm believer in “Ask and it shall be Given.” It’s a dictum that works. “I walked around King Street in Pukekohe and told businesspeople about the petition. Some gave me envelopes, another printed my petitions. A lawyer friend printed some more and a real estate agent gave me envelopes and stamps. People from different church groups donated cakes etc to a cake stall I held in town and donations came in from people who wanted to help,” Nathan explains. “I started with 150 others signatures, but you have to be 18 to sign, so normally, even I couldn’t sign. But because the petition expresses the concerns of young people about the effects of nudity, we were able to.” The petition eventually contained 1050 signatures.
This year 13 student at Pukekohe High School likes to know what is happening in the community and to be part of it. He attends Pukekohe High School Board meetings as an observer, ineligible to stand as a student representative because he works at the school as a cleaner. He is the Service and Food Workers Union delegate at PHS.
Nathan is deeply supportive of his school, involving himself in whatever he can. He is on hand helping out at Pukekohe High’s Parent Teacher Interviews, Careers Evenings and helping school photo days run smoothly. He is one of about 50 students on ‘orange jacket duty,’ a visible protection to make all students feel secure and has been a student librarian for the last five years. Last year he won a top award for Services to Art – not as an artist or drama student, but by painstakingly putting the school’s extensive art library in order. Among his sheaf of certificates and awards, Nathan has a Pukekohe Lions (2008) and Pukekohe Rotary Club awards for Services to School (2009).
Nathan can be found at meetings of the Franklin District Council whenever they fit into his school commitments “because I am interested in the way that the council makes their decisions.” He is a member of the Pukekohe Youth Council and a volunteer at Christian Community Care in Pukekohe, where he spends school holidays with four or five other young people working in the Food Bank or clothing stall. Before Christmas each year, he joins around 100 other volunteers (20 of whom are young people) at CCC to help make food parcels. “People ask me why I volunteer so much. The answer is simple. I’m a Christian and I’m called to serve.”
Politics has always been a major interest for Nathan. He speaks up at public meetings, such as the public meeting attended by Hon Rodney Hide regarding Auckland Governance. “I have always had a strong passion for youth affairs and politics. I write to Members of Parliament on issues like abortion, the anti-smacking law and human rights. I understand the issues young people face, like safety and suicide. I write away for books like Youth and the Law from the Law Commission and Standing Orders of the House of Commons in England and have a subscription to the Hansard Report. I also have an understanding of the parliamentary process. People think someone at 18 is too young to know anything, but there are a lot of young people at our school who have strong opinions on things that matter. I, like my peers are looking forward to being able to vote and have my say!”