Six years ago at the Holi celebrations in Wiatakere, Minister Paula Bennett flagged off the phenomenal journey of the Indian Weekender. As we move towards celebrating the completion of our six years, it was only natural that we receive a visit from the minister herself to congratulate us on the journey and reconfirm her support to the Indian community via the Indian Weekender.
In a candid interview during her visit the minister shared her own personal story of her journey and struggles and stated how she admired the journey of migrants. She stated that she had immense respect for all migrants and in particular the people from India who move to a completely new country and start their life over again right from scratch. She spoke of the achievements of the community as a whole and its ability to look after and rally around its own people. She spoke of how she held these cultural exchanges very close to her heart.
The minister commended the work that Indian Weekender was doing in continuing to be the pulse of the Kiwi Indian community and bringing the good news stories of the community to not just the entire Indian community but to also the larger community. She congratulated the team, for the job that they were doing in growing the Indian Weekender from strength to strength.
In speaking about the role and strength of the Indian women, the minister spoke of her admiration and fondness for our very own Indian MP Dr Parmjeet Parmar. She spoke about the need of more “women power” in parliament.
For us at the Indian Weekender, it was a complete honour to be able to host the minister and an inspiration to continue to do our best. It was almost as she had flagged us off six years ago, she was there to flag us off as we establish ourselves as the only weekly publication for the Indian community.
About Paula Bennett
Paula Bennett is the first ever MP for Upper Harbour, a brand new electorate covering parts of West Auckland and the North Shore.
She is also a senior Minister in John Key’s National-led Government, being number 5 in the Cabinet which comes with considerable responsibility.
In spite of being quite busy in her roles as the Minister for Local Government, Social Housing, State Services, and Associate Minister of Tourism and Finance, she seems committed to working hard for Upper Harbour and advocating for her constituents and their concerns in Parliament.