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Sports |
Polls awareness vital
CHANGES have been made to electoral
laws and the way to vote and they need to be made aware to the
people.
The first thing is for the people to realise that the voting
system has changed from the first-past-the-post system to the
limited preferential voting (LPV) system.
They also need to know that there is a separate ballot paper and a
separate candidate poster.
To vote, they must write the code numbers or the names of three
candidates according to their preference – first (number 1),
second (2) and third (3).
This new system will be confusing to a majority of the people,
many of whom are illiterate and I hope they will be given
assistance.
The authorities must inform the people of this assistance so that
they are not misled or manipulated. -Citizen, Port Moresby
No future in SHP
NIPA Kutubu in the Southern Highlands
is regarded to be the stronghold of Governor Hami Yawari but after
31 years of independence, it remains one of the least developed
parts of the country. We fear there is no future for us. The
villagers are fed up with Yawari’s handout to win support. We are
fed up of his highly-personalised and self-centred style of
leadership. We have had enough of politicians who have neither the
administrative skills nor the intellectual capacity to make good
decisions in the interest of the people.
This is strong a reminder to Hami Yawari and other intending
candidates; be prepared to face the unexpected when setting foot
in Nipa. Enough is enough; we have had enough of politicians who
have neither the administrative skills nor the intellectual
capacity to make rational decisions for the people in their own
interests. – Sal Kogob, Port Moresby
Time to change mindset
IT has been said over and over again:
that we must elect leaders who are of good character, honest, have
good leadership qualities, capable, and so on. Yet time and time
again, we end up with leaders who are self-serving and who do we
blame for this? In Simbu, we have a tendency to “give and take”
which is deeply rooted in our culture. The politicians have also
used it, as well as the people’s ignorance, to their advantage.
However, they are not the ones to be blamed for the situation that
we are in. The blame lies with you and I, the voters. We are the
ones who voted bad leaders into office, allowing them to abuse
public funds, power and other resources. It is time that we
ordinary people educate ourselves and change our mindset if we
want a better society and a better quality of life. – Paul
Moiya, Port Moresby
Right move by Somare
MANY people have criticised Public
Enterprise Minister Arthur Somare for trying to withhold the entry
of two mobile phone service providers into the country to compete
with Telikom PNG for another year. Many see it as political
interference. I have spoken to several professionals in the field
of telecommunication and internet services, and I commend Somare’s
bold move. I believe he has the country’s interest at heart and is
intent on laying a solid foundation before any deal can be made.
For so long, our leaders had made policies on an ad hoc basis for
short-term gains without considering the long-term ramifications,
hence, our country is struggling despite of our rich natural
resources. I am skeptical of the Government’s policies, but for
this one, I would give Somare a perfect 10. – Gunzee S Gawin,
Melbourne, Australia
Somare protecting our interest
KEPAI Gun was critical of Arthur
Somare’s stand on policy requirements but I believe the Public
Enterprises Minister is serving the interest of the country.
Somare is correct when he said that there is no policy governing
the information and communication industry. One was drawn up in
1994 but it is outdated and needs to be replaced before the
industry can be deregulated. The Government must protect national
interest through policy. It must dictate the direction the
industry should take through policy and not the other way around
which will be disastrous for this nation. Perhaps the only
downside on this is the fact that a foreign consultant was brought
in to write the policy that is now considered unworkable in PNG.
The minister should have more faith in Papua New Guineans and get
them to draft the policy. – Kanupng, Manus Island
Participants shortchanged
I COMMEND Wari Vele for allocating
funds for the NCD Governor’s Cup during the long Easter weekend.
However, not all the money reached the people that it was intended
for. The champions were supposed to get K5,000, the runners-up
K2,500, and second runners-up K1,000. All the participating teams
were to receive K100 each and the referees K100 per day for the
two-day event. In the end, the champions received only K600, the
runners-up K400, the second runners-up K300. The participating
teams got K50 each and the referees K80 per day. The scorers were
paid only K20. Towards the end of the tournament, an employee from
the governor’s office, who was also a member of a certain team,
was overheard telling one of his teammates that the prize money
was reduced because they had failed to reach the final! If true,
that is corruption at its best. – Victimised, Port Moresby
 
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