Author:
Wane Sirunki
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Date Posted: Wed, Dec 03 2008, 03:48:32pm
In reply to suggestions regarding Enga Development Forum, at first glance I'd thought the name was misleading. EDF - Electoral Development Fund? Any or ALL development is possible in even the remotest parts of Enga, in the Nete/Penale/Hewa, Pinai, Maramuni, and any village in our densely people populated Ambum/Aiyele/Wage/Tsak/Minamb/Lai/Lagaip/Ipae valleys. If anyone can ask, when real development took place in Enga, I'd undoubtedly say Enga really moved in the 1980's when the likes of Kundapen Talyanga, Anderson Aipit (late), Philip Kikala, were at the administrative helm of Enga Administration. Today, Enga is poor-rich, rich in name because of our resources, but poor in every respect because of the ego-centred greed, selfishness and promiscuous conduct of NOT only our action leaders but everyone in the Enga system of both government and church in our closely-knitted kinship society. As long as our leaders, and even some of the so-called educated sons of Enga, who, some have outsmarted all Engans, have so taken advantage of the vacuum in the Ipatas 'Yama Putitili Anda', profited and become overnight millionaires, who can pay their Sons' brideprice in the hundred thousands, Enga will remain backward. Enga desperately needs honest, transparent and God-fearing political leaders, public servants, community and church leaders, with focused and directed leadership vision, at all levels. Enga does not need ambitious leaders now. A forum such as this should talk about change, real change that will have a real impact on real people. For example, the Ipatas 'Yama Putitil Anda' is a soc-eco-political mismatch. We cannot talk about real development in that house when it is 'preoccuppied' with the wrong hands, eyes, minds, thoughts, etc hence political leadership should be the last needed cleanup. If Enga needs to change, change must first come from the levels of the so-called 'small office boys' - the cleaners, administration clerks, supply and requisition clerks, and up the ladder in the Ipatas Yama Putitil Anda. Change we must not only see but must beleive must come from bottom-up. I am for a CHANGE ENGA FORUM. I only have my thoughts, skills and knowledge to offer for a better Enga. We are living as things are as normal. You only have to travel the Enga Highway from Wapenamanda to Wabag to Laiagam to see for yourself, where we are heading to. Shame on EVERYONE - action governor, council presidents, church leaders, educated Engans, tribesmen, and all our people! Engans today have developed a new mentality, a sense of sort 'borrowed' from somewhere, never known to our fathers and their fathers. We don't need to talk about changing leaders, however it is crucial now, that we must first and foremost, talk about changing our attitudes and our behaviour, the mentality of the Engan tribesmen 'rambo warrior' style execution of the law, so in a forum such as this, we discuss about ways to instil some lost discipline into our people's attitudes, and talk about changes as real as rice and tin-fish on the table. That they believe in these changes to make sense out of our existence and our children's future. As long as Enga remains a lawless and leaderless society, we will lack behind development. In a forum as such, development talk must be politically-free, changing leaders at every election is not the answer. It is about educating our people, about the lack of purpose and direction seen in all areas of government, church, tribal and family units in Enga. We get excited when we ourselves and others describe Engans as born leaders, we dream we have a rightful place, to be second only to the Jewish nation and people in PNG. God created all men equal and did not bestow leadership and blessings upon one man more than the other. Father Abraham blessed Isaac more than Isau, because Abraham was blind. Imagine if he wasn't blind! It was a case of mistaken identity. Engans must not put on this mistaken identity. We have observed that during the last election. Engans must come low, keep low and respect others. Let others talk about us, not ourselves forcing on others to lay claim to things. At least Peter Ipatas should bow his head low, in shame because he did not achieve his dream to become PM. PNG's top political post was on our grasp, it was hijacked by Bill Skate and Chris Haiveta and bestowed to their Kerema wantok. Ol meri Kerema kukim sago dust na tanim het blo PI so he danced to their music.No wonder, Peter Ipatas and John Pundari have been bitter since! Don Polye and Sam Abal were about to repeat what JP tried, again Action Governor PI stood in, courted the Sepik Mafia gang, we have lost again. Engans are doomed. During a forum as this, we should educate our people that no leader is born a leader. Leadership is a learned behavioural process that leaders must learn to lead. It is not a right for any man to claim outright leadership. A forum as this, should work hard to achieve this as our overall goal. Unless Engans change, Enga will not change. We have to learn from others, like the world's greatest leaders India's Ghandi, England's Churchill, America's Lincoln, etc have walked and slept the streets to become leaders. It took years, for people to realize a leader was among them! A few Engans have suddenly come up from obscurity and nowhere, some have made their names overnight, to claim the right to leadership.
IN such a forum as this, I would give my unequivocal support to a Enga Change Forum, only if it is free of any political affiliation. A Enga Change Forum that will pride and visions itself to upholding the Enga Way of Life, to encompass all domains of Enga life. Enga should return back to the days when there was the Enga Yaka Lasemana (EYL), a development blueprint for the Administration that time, which is more relevant to our time.
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