New Zealand needs to fix its "national attitude" toward gangs and stop turning "a blind eye" to the harm caused by organised crime, Western Bay of Plenty Mayor Garry Webber argues.
Speaking to The AM Show on Wednesday, Webber said more attention needs to be aimed at why people join gangs, otherwise they will continue to flourish despite recent crackdowns.
"Where there is a demand, people will step in to satisfy it. We've got to work out what's the underlying cause that leads to the demand and try and focus on fixing those issues, which again comes back to a national attitude - do we want to sort out these problems, or now and again turn a blind eye?" Webber explained to The AM Show.
"We have a conversation, 'Are they a gang, are they a club?' Whatever. That's not the issue. The issue is what they're doing is harming our citizens."
He also suggested that attention has been taken away from New Zealand's rampant drug problem amid the COVID-19 outbreak, with the Defence Force and NZ Police focusing on the public health crisis.
"When you look at the other issue we've got in New Zealand at the moment - COVID - and the Defence Force and the police force that's been thrown at working away through that... are we seriously looking at the harm that drugs do? This is a national issue."
His comments follow the shutdown of the Mongols MC gang operation in the Bay of Plenty after a series of search warrants were executed on Tuesday morning. The gang's senior hierarchy now face at least 228 charges after drugs, guns, cash and homemade bombs were seized during the raids as part of Operation Silk.
The investigation will allege that the Mongols were involved in the sale and supply of methamphetamine and cocaine on a commercial level across the Bay of Plenty and wider North Island, "causing significant harm to our communities", Detective Superintendent Greg Williams said on Tuesday.
The ongoing violence between organised crime groups is largely over drug market control, Williams confirmed, with rival gangs making it clear they will use violence to protect their share of the illegal market.
"This includes not only arming up but a very clear propensity to use these firearms and commit other violent acts such as arson, serious assaults, aggravated robberies and serious violence," Williams said.
Despite the successful culmination of Operation Silk, Webber reiterated that authorities need to take drug-related harm "seriously".
"What they're doing is they're harming kids, families and communities," he said.
Webber says communities can help prevent gang-related harm, suggesting that many locals are unwilling to volunteer information.
"I suppose the community could be a little bit more open in providing information for the police because generally, the neighbours know what's going on... we have anecdotal things of a house where 30 cars come past and stop - you know what that's for," he said.
"It's a matter of getting that information to the police and the public need to take their area of responsibility a bit more seriously."
The Bay of Plenty chapter of the Mongols was reportedly established last year after influential members were deported from Australia, who began to recruit locally.
Webber said there has been no evidence of collateral damage due to the Mongols' activity, however their presence has proved difficult for local communities.
Despite the major sting successfully shutting down the Bay of Plenty branch, Webber said it wasn't the end of the Mongols MC operation.
"[Just] like it's not the end of COVID either," he said.
The gang reportedly has active members in the Christchurch area.
