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by HIMU ALE
Choose good leaders with visions
I APPRECIATE the ranking of leaders,
especially from the Highlands region for their suitability as the
country’s next prime minister in previous articles by Sheena
Kamane in this viewpoint section and in Dr Michael Unage’s weekly
column, Talking Point.
Every Papua New Guinean, whether educated, semi-educated or
illiterate, has their own criteria in choosing their preferred
prime minister for this nation.
I believe our leaders in the Haus Tambaran fall under three major
categories.
First, in a class of their own, as highlighted by Dr Unage, are
leaders like Sir Mekere Morauta, Sir Rabbie Namaliu, Sir Michael
Somare, Bart Philemon and Bire Kimisopa.
If you analyse these leaders critically, they have some common
qualities. They have a very good standing in the national and
international arena. They are intellectuals who have reached the
pinnacle of their career in the private and public sectors and
they want to translate their success to the development of this
nation. They have their own ways of implementing policies.
I would suggest that Sir Mekere tops the list as a reformist and
will be remembered by many Papuan New Guineans for the structural
changes he has brought about and the benefits that have flowed to
this current Government.
Bart Philemon will be remembered for his tight budgetary controls
and Sir Michael Somare will be remembered as the father of this
nation and for restoring political stability after many years of
turmoil in the wake of the reforms Sir Mekere initiated.
Sir Rabbie and Mr Kimisopa fit in well in this category due to
their transparent and robust leadership qualities.
All these leaders have exceptional qualities for the position of
prime minister.
We have a couple more leaders in this category who have not shone
well in this current term. They include Dr Puka Temu, Peter
O’Neill, Dr Allan Marat and Moses Maladina, each of whom could be
a force in the coming election.
Also in this category, we have the loyalists, who may be very
influential but remain in the background as they serve the
government of the day, because they want to use the office they
hold to make a difference for the people that make up the
grassroots.
These leaders are nationalists who are in a league of their own.
They uphold their public offices with dignity and pride to serve
the people of this nation.
Leaders of this caliber include Dame Carol Kidu, Willam Duma, Sir
Peter Barter, Paul Tiensten, Gabriel Kapris, John Hickey and Sir
Moi Avei. They know their roles as leaders and without any doubt
can handle any portfolio.
The second class of leaders includes those who muscle their way
around the floor of Parliament and act as the powerbrokers of the
government of the day.
They tend to be rather young and immature and are in power because
of their political parties or they could be sacrificial lambs for
‘the big boys’ in power.
Leaders like this are likely to disappear when their term expires
and include, in the current Government, leaders like Patrick
Pruaitch, Arthur Somare, Don Poyle, Nick Kuman and Michael Nali.
Such leaders can reach the top level very quickly but cannot
maintain their status and suffer a disastrous fall. I believe
these leaders are unstable and can dance to the tune of any music
played in the ‘House Tambaran’.
Some other backbenchers, who serve as vice-ministers in the
current Government, would fit in this category.
The third category involves leaders who resemble the traditional
Melanesian leadership style. They have been voted into office
because of prestige and wealth in their own village societies.
They are not constructive and do not in any way match the top two
categories. They are the result of the local people’s inability to
distinguish a good legislator from a leader.
Most Papua New Guineans in rural settings see that leaders are
people with many wives, have money to help people pay compensation
or settle disputes, help in times of need such as funeral
arrangements, pay school fees, moka (traditional exchange in the
Highlands) and help establish a stronger family unit within a
cultural and ethnic setting.
Some current political leaders represent this type of leadership.
Educated Papua New Guinean are aware of this leadership style
where individuals may personally carry huge sums of public money
and distribute cash to people, hiring cars, chartering plane and
donating taxpayers money to sporting activities, creating a hard
time for accountants trying to keep tabs on the spending of public
funds.
This is a hybrid of a traditional Melanesian leadership style and
Western leadership that will not work for Papua New Guinea though
it may be suitable for Southern Highlands and Enga Province.
Papua New Guineans are coming of age and want to vote for
political parties that are led by elite leaders with credible
standing and defined policies and strategies.
As the saying goes and I rephrase, ‘we want leaders to show us how
to fish for ourselves and not to fish for us’.
Papua New Guineans have suffered over the last 31 years because of
lack of good governance and unstable governments.
Now that we have stability in place we want leaders with visions
to lead us.
*The writer is a post graduate research
fellow at the University of Papua New Guinea. His area of research
is in resource management, environmental governance and planning
 
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