A 19-year-old Zulu orphan brought to New Zealand for a new life by his adoptive parents to live in Pōkeno has announced he is standing for the Waikato mayoralty.
Fabio Rodrigues has lived in Pōkeno since he was 8.
Fabio Rodrigues will also run in the Tuakau-Pōkeno ward for council on a platform to bring affordability, accountability and energy back to local government.
It is now a three-horse race – incumbent Jacqui Church and former deputy mayor Aksel Bech are also standing – but Rodrigues says he represents change.
Rodrigues was born in Durban. His birth mother died within hours, and his birth father was jailed after he abandoned the baby, leaving him on top of a rubbish bin for days.
“The doctor said I had 48 hours to live and here I am.”
Rodrigues’ luck changed when Elaine and John Rodrigues adopted him and two other Zulu children to become part of the family with their only birth child, a son who has since died. Rodrigues is the youngest.
Cambridge News 12 June 2025
They emigrated to Howick and then Pōkeno when Rodrigues was eight. He went on to attend Pukekohe High School and now studies law and political science while working and campaigning.
“I’m standing because when I was settling in primary school, I had a conversation with a ward councillor that stuck with me. She said that in New Zealand there’s a promise – a promise that no matter who you are or where you come from, if you keep your nose clean and work hard, you’ll be able to have a good life, a steady paycheque and the ability to afford food and housing,” said Rodrigues.
That promise has been broken especially when it comes to rates, housing, infrastructure and how money is spent, he said.
“This council is getting bloated. Council spending is going up and up and up, so I am saying let’s cut,” echoing the thoughts of Bech.
Aucklanders who moved south to Pōkeno, Tuakau and Mercer for more affordable housing, were moving back because rates are double what they were paying in the city. Rodrigues said.
He knows Waikato voters will wonder whether a 19-year-old could be an effective mayor.
“If you don’t trust me because I am so young, fine, put me on the council table at least. I know I’ll be a Pōkeno-Tuakau ward councillor, but I will be a councillor for everyone, if elected.”
Local issues he intends to address immediately if elected include a broken promise to provide wheelie bins for Pōkeno.
“If you’re really unhappy with what is currently going on, you need change. The two candidates (for mayor) are not the change, the real, proper change.”
Rodrigues is a member of the National Party but is running as an independent saying his campaign is about the local community, not party politics.
Fabio Rodrigues has lived in Pōkeno since he was 8.
