Be considerate of others

IN times of crisis like what is presently facing the entire world, it is very easy to be self-centred and care less about one’s neighbours.
But it is in such times that the true human spirit should be at its best.
Too often, there are acts of selfishness everywhere which only make life less enjoyable for others.
Take for instance the actions of a PMV driver who draws mindlessly on his cigarette and blows out a mist into the interior of the bus without a care.
He is fully aware that he is breaking a simple rule that prohibits smoking in a public bus but does it anyway.
The betel nut consumer continues to litter pavements, shop fronts and streets with the husk and red paste with blissful neglect for cleanliness of the city and the health of others.
The alcohol drinker is fully aware that intoxicated he should never get behind the wheel for he risks killing himself and any other motorist or pedestrian.
Yet, he drives while under the influence and if he does not kill or maim anyone, he runs down an ornamental tree that has taken some work and money to be placed there to thrive and beautify the city.
The manufacturer knows also that drink driving is a huge problem but offers a lame rhyme as a token of social responsibility.
This obsession with self-centeredness is a stumbling block to any endeavour that is aimed at creating peaceful communities for all to enjoy.
Look around and ponder.
Indications from yesterday are that most of us have woken up this morning with this one question in mind: What does today have in store for me, or how can I maximise my personal gain today? A few might asking how they would make the day better for others, not themselves.
Selfishness has no place in communal Papua New Guinea and even a modern nation.
The loftiest desire to advance, to battle corruption and to improve world rankings in social and economic terms must all begin with the basic resolve to put service and the happiness of the neighbour above selfish concern and gain.
This is the law of nature that applies even to those who don’t have any sort of religious conviction at all.
Individualism is starkly contrary to PNG communal living and even modern nationalism.
Might it be time now to change tack and take a different path away from what has been accepted as conventional wisdom in the past years?
For a relatively young democracy, there is time to chart a new development pathway, but one that looks inwardly into how individual communities have functioned and thrived over centuries.
There is wisdom and knowledge that may have been overlooked.
The path to nationhood has been laid by the founding fathers; for the past 40 years the nation has trodden on that beaten path.
There is today a need to let go what has not worked well and take on a brave new approach and that must be founded on seeking the greatest good of the nation while shunning any ambition aimed at selfish gain.
It is an inherent trait that needs to be nationalised as the one sure way of bringing out the greatness in this great nation.
The adage that it is more blessed to give than to receive need not be based on religion.
It is a simple rule of nature; what goes around comes around, to every action there is a reaction.