Despite Harry carrying a 1.3 metre white cane, an MSD employee asked him for a driver's licence for identification. (Stock image) Photo: 123rf
A legally blind New Plymouth man who is gutted about plans to carve up Whaikaha, the Ministry of Disabled People, and shift some of its responsibility to the Ministry of Social Development told Checkpoint: "Lord have mercy on the disabled community".
Harry, 72, went into his local Ministry of Social Development office in New Plymouth last month to report his landlord's rent increase to see if the accommodation supplement could be adjusted, but the experience did not go well.
Despite carrying a 1.3 metre white cane, a hi-viz vest and black fitover glasses, the MSD employee asked him for a driver's licence for identification.
"I produced my Gold Card photo ID and I've got a total mobility card so I produced that and he said no, I need your drivers licence," he said.
Legally blind man asked for drivers license at MSD office
"My moment's reaction was you are kidding? Who in heaven's name would give me a driver's licence?"
He said he told the man he had given him his landlord's letter, with his name and address and his SuperGold Card has his photo on it.
"Do I need anything else? Oh, he said. Well, we need a licence. He was rather incredulous and made a couple of comments about ID and so on," he said.
"I said 'Well, you've got it', and he grudgingly took it, accepted it and scanned them both."
In the end, Harry said he laughed his experience off.
But he was worried about the government's announcement on Thursday to cut most of the funding of Whaikaha and instead transfer the responsibility for delivering support services to MSD.
"Lord have mercy on the disabled community, because there's nobody in there trained to deal with that level of disability because you realise that you're talking about people with motor skills problems, speech skills, they're in wheelchairs," he told Checkpoint.
The government is also freezing funding for residential facilities including the "Enabling Good Lives" programme that is supposed to empower disabled people to make decisions about support services.
Harry volunteers for the programme and is upset about the government's decision.
"I'm gutted, utterly gutted. Because I've been working with enabling Good Lives Taranaki over the last two and a bit years and we've been telling people that this programme is gonna help them gain control.
"A lot of it has to do with gaining individual funding and what they can do with their money as they get it and how to improve their lives and how to improve their standard of living and how they can progress forward and and live a good life."
MSD says 'sorry'
In a statement to Checkpoint, the Ministry of Social Development said it was sorry.
"In relation to Harry's experience at our Work and Income office, this shouldn't have happened. We're really sorry," said Gloria Campbell, Regional Commissioner for Social Development, Taranaki Region.
Campbell said the SuperGold Card should have been accepted at the outset.
"The cane was put up on the bench and the front of house person didn't notice it because they were focussing on Harry. They apologised to Harry right away at the time.
"We would be happy to apologise to Harry again if that would be helpful for him. Our staff training includes a package to support them to understand our clients' points of view and experience".
The Ministry of Social Development said it wanted to reassure clients of Disability Support Services that they woulf not need to come into MSD's Work and Income offices to receive their services.
"Disability Support Services will be set up as a separate business unit within MSD, separate from Work and Income," Melissa Gill, deputy chief executive for Organisational Assurance and Communicatio saidn.
"For disabled people who receive DSS, their point of contact will continue to be their providers - their NASC, host or Enabling Good Lives site. MSD's relationship will be with the providers."