Vying to be Hiri Queen

THREE contestants from Elavala village during the mini festival held in the village last weekend to choose their representative for this year’s Hiri Moale Festival next month.
From left are winner Henao Hale (Miss Elavala) with two other competitors from Elavala, Koani Mea and Igue Pipi.-Picture by AURI EVA of The National

Lie clocks of Papua New Guinea

A famous politician in Papua New Guinea died and went to heaven.
As he stood in front of St Peter at the Pearly Gates, he saw a huge wall of clocks behind him.
He asked, "What are all those clocks?"
St Peter answered, "Those are Lie-Clocks. Everyone on Earth has a Lie-Clock. Every time you lie the hands on your clock will move."
"Oh," said the politician, "whose clock is that?" "That's Mother Teresa's.
The hands have never moved, indicating that she never told a lie."
"Incredible," said the politician.
"And whose clock is that one?"
St Peter responded, "That's Port Moresby Archbishop's clock. The hands have moved twice, telling us that the bishop told only two lies in his entire life."
"Where's Somare's clock?" asked the politician.
"Somare's clock is in Jesus' office. He's using it as a ceiling fan."

Pacific Adventist University celebrates its 25th anniversary (please click to enlarge)

Happy Birthday, Hula

Happy birthday to my beloved wife and Mum, Hula Debe Nalu, who would have turned 33 today, but left us so alone and tragically on Easter Sunday, March 23, 2008.

Memories of the time we have spent together will be cherished forever.

With never-ending love from Malum and our four young children Malum Jr, Gedi, Moasing and Gedi.

Do not stand at my grave and weep,I am not there, I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am the diamond glint on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you wake in the morning hush,I am the swift, uplifting rush Of quiet birds in circling flight.

I am the soft starlight at night.

Do not stand at my grave and weep.

I am not there, I do not sleep.

Do not stand at my grave and cry.

I am not there, I did not die!

Visit a real Papua New Guinea settlement

The Eight-Mile Settlement outside Port Moresby is setting the pace for other settlements in Papua New Guinea by having its own photographic exhibition and establishing its own website which features heartwarming poems and stories written by its residents.
The exhibition with a difference, titled ‘Life in 8-Mile is Hard’ opened at the University of PNG last Saturday night (Aug 22) and will next year be featured at the Monash Gallery of Art in Melbourne, Australia.
A difference in that it featured photographs by settlement youth who were taught and inspired by Australian professional photographer Sean Davey.
In what is believed to be a first for a settlement community in Papua New Guinea, Davey has also set up a website entirely devoted to the Eight-Mile Settlement, http://www.8milesettlement.com/ which showcases their photographs, writings and lifestyle.

Debate on major issues not trivial matters: Aihi

Kairuku-Hiri MP Paru Aihi wants debates on issues of Papua New Guinea’s national importance to be intelligent and informative to help policy planners and law makers to reach final decisions for the good and well being of the majority citizens.

Mr Aihi said he has noted with much interest that in recent times there had been much public debate on many pressing issues and concerns affecting PNG and its citizens.

“Since the abrupt adjournment of Parliament on July 29 2009, I’ve followed with keen interest the debate particularly on whether the current Somare-Temu Government should remain in office or be removed,” he said.

“Leaders and people of all walks of life have voiced their concerns about this issue.

“My concerns are that leaders, particularly members of Parliament, should focus and concentrate their debates on major issues and things that matter.

“We should not waste our time, talents and treasure on petty and trivial matters of personal nature, like political and business cronies jumping quickly to defending their mentors when criticised for non-performance or lack of it.

“Instead, we should be debating on more-pressing issues such as endemic corruption that is ravaging PNG, breakdown and open defiance of the rule of law, misuse of public funds, deteriorating state of basic services PNG-wide and the poor delivery of vital government services.

“These are real and critical issues affecting our people.

“We need to be focused and discuss intelligently how best we can contribute to finding the best solutions to our problems.

“Our decision must be based on well-informed advice in our endeavours to resolving issues and problems that confront us.”

Mr Aihi also urged the leaders and the general public to refrain from making personal attacks on leaders and spreading false rumours because such would not do anyone any good.

Papua New Guinea must be wary of miners' lies

By James Wanjik

THE MINERS are here for money to be made from resources of Papua New Guinea. They are not here on charitable mission. Where there is money there will be mines. Seeing is believing. No amount of lies and deceits of PNG Chamber of Mines and Petroleum will change that.

The PNG Chamber of Mines and Petroleum should keep out of landowner issues. No lies and deceits of Greg Anderson will be believed. Real landowners will tell Greg Anderson to explain who actually benefits from exploration. None other than mining companies. They benefit by selling geological information on PNG resources.

Look at Frieda example. It is over 40 years and the area is still under exploration. The landowners are the same though some of their forebears would have parted for life after.

On the Chamber’s website they boast of over 200 tenements. Majority of these are exploration licences and many are still awaiting consideration.

Mining tenements are not many. They number as the number of mines we have. These are mines which load people including landowners with problems money cannot buy or recompense. Nothing is more exemplary as the Ok Tedi mine’s environmental pollution of Ok Tedi and Fly Rivers System.

Now PNG is taken for a ride yet again by the PNG Chamber of Mines and Petroleum. They do not want landowners stopping exploration companies making money on PNG resources. Here is vested interest hidden in lot of words.

When exploration leads to production then Mineral Resources Authority (MRA) will collect production levy from mining companies. MRA is unconstitutional. It is operating illegally. It was set up by outsiders including Greg Anderson. The MRA has no legal standing to process mineral tenements and to enforce them. This is another vested interest of Greg Anderson. Landowners must rock MRA to rock PNG Chamber of Mines and Petroleum.

The warning has been out. Landowners will push MRA out of PNG. Then mines will be lawless. There is no mandated regulator of mines. MRA is a counterfeit. It is the issue for the take.

Landowners have two options. Raise resource ownership and be stuck with MRA or remove MRA for landowners to move miners out of their land.

Politics of resource ownership and regulation will kill the mining industry. When it does PNG will suffer. MRA is the rot which must be removed now.