Bid for a higher chieftaincy

A tribute and reflection on Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare’s loss in the election for the 46th UN General Assembly president.

By DANIEL KUMBON
IT MOVED me to tears when I saw two elderly men of same height and age smile at each other and hug tightly as best friends do after missing each other for a long time.
Indeed, they were best friends, two of the country’s founding fathers, Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare and Sir Julius Chan. They probably knew this would be their last time to meet and greet, then wave farewell forever from Kavieng airport in New Ireland.
The two veteran politicians would not have another chance. They were featured in a video played on the big screen where hundreds and hundreds of mourners from Enga filled to capacity the Sir John Guise Indoor Stadium where the haus krai or funeral home was at.

I am sure former Kandep MP Jimson Sauk who sat with me, wiped away some tears too. We knew them very well, tireless men of integrity who had been returned to parliament for a lifetime by their people until Somare retired on his own free will.
We sat through to the end of the proceedings which took over four hours. It was Enga’s turn on Friday, March 5 to mourn along with Manus and the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB) in the two-week-long national mourning period set aside for the death of the man who led PNG to independence.
A positive outcome of Sir Michael Somare’s death was a display of unity among Enga’s elected leaders, civil servants, business leaders and people living in the city. They had turned up in huge numbers painted in white clay to cry and pay their last respects.
Who would have expected to see Enga Governor Sir Peter Ipatas, Sir John Pundari, Don Polye, Rimbink Pato, Sam Abal and Dr Lino Tom to walk arm-in-arm to the funeral home?
Engans could be fierce rivals on the battle field or on the political front but they instinctively know when to hold hands and come together. Today they demonstrated respect and humility, and expressed deep sorrow for the passing of a great man whose departure was felt by the whole nation like a tremor.

The Engans had come prepared to pour their heart out but there was no member of the Somare family in sight to whom they could really express their sorrow, deliver speeches and present gifts as is custom in the province.
Only East Sepik Governor Allan Bird and Aitape Lumi MP, Patrick Pruaitch were present to receive them.
Just the same, Sam Abal, Isaac Lupari, Sir Salamo Injia, Don Polye and Governor Sir Peter Ipatas reminisced their past experiences with the great leader. Some of the events like the hijacking of his government were painful to hear but the great man had absorbed it all with a forgiving heart.
Each spoke highly of Sir Michael Thomas Somare and likened him to Nelson Mandela of South Africa, George Washington of America and Ben Gurion of Israel, visionary leaders who always had the people at heart.
Governor Sir Peter Ipatas then presented an undisclosed amount of cash on behalf of Enga people to his counterpart Allan Bird to help the people of East Sepik with their haus krai preparations in Wewak.
If there was anything that could be deduced or predicted from the presentations, the Father of the Nation had united the Enga leaders and future prospects looked promising.
Moderator of the Enga segment of proceedings, Peter Mision Yaki nailed it when he said Grand Chief Sir Michael Thomas Somare had united PNG not only as a people from a thousand different tribes but also through blood.
He then introduced a confident young girl of eight years whose father is from Enga and mother from Manus. Her grandparents are of Enga and New Ireland heritage.

She is Pauline Wapen Mango, a third grader at Lahara Avenue School in Boroko. She stood in front of a packed house and recited a poignant poem from memory.
Grand Chief Sir Michael Thomas Somare had been constantly coming to Enga starting in 1973 as chief minister. He was met at Wapenamanda airport by Pato Kakaraya. I remember following them towards the Waso stores. Somare was wearing his familiar laplap or sulu and a pair of leather thongs.
The year before in 1972, Sir Tei Abal had come to Pausa Lutheran High School where I did Form One or Grade 7. He said Michael Somare was trying to accomplish the impossible by trying to ‘chew sugar cane and sweet potatoes’ at the same time.
‘Wanpela man ino inap kaikai kakau wantaim suka. Wanpela blong daunim na narapela bilong tromoi,’ Sir Tei said figuratively in Tok Pisin meaning that PNG had to experience self-government for some time before independence could be considered but Somare was rushing it when much of the country was not yet developed.

Two years later, on Sept 16, 1975 Michael Thomas Somare won through and successfully attained independence.
At that time, Pauline the young poet’s grandfather, Paul Mango was a student at Sogeri National High School.
He was one of many students who were dressed in traditional attire to escort visiting foreign dignitaries during the celebrations. Now 46 years later, his grandchild was reciting a poem at Sir Michael Thomas Somare’s funeral home.
I too attended the independence festivities at the Sir Hubert Murray Stadium with the rest of the student body from Idubada Technical College where I did Form 4.
Late in the afternoon, I went for refreshments at late Nenk Pasul’s residence on Paga Hill. He was my representative in the House of Assembly.
Nenk Pasul MBE and Sir Pato Kakaraya of Wapenamanda were staunch supporters of Somare and his Pangu Pati.
A couple of days before Sir Michael passed on, my new book Victory Song of Pingeta’s Daughter was released. The great man is featured several times together with all prime ministers except Sir Mekere Mourata who had all walked on Enga soil.

Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawk graces the pages too, meeting public servants and local leaders on a visit to the Porgera gold mine. The photos will be safely tucked away in the book for posterity.
And Paul Kurai whose family story is told in the book was branch president when Sir Michael’s National Alliance party won four of the six seats in Enga during the 2002 national elections.
Sir Michael Somare demonstrated what leadership is all about when he came with his full cabinet to have a National Executive Council meeting in Wabag as if to share power with the people.
And he chose to sleep at Pawas village in the humble home of late Sir Tei Abal who had been his ace political rival during PNG’s formative years.
Later, Somare handed over the reins of the top executive post to Sir Tei’s son Sam Abal before he left for Singapore to receive prolonged medical treatment.
I’ve had my share of personal contact with the great man too. I saw him come to endorse Nenk Pasul as a Pangu Pati candidate in our village at Komblos in 1977.
Twenty years later, he came to endorse me as a National Alliance candidate for Kandep in 1997. Jimson Sauk won back the seat to serve a third term before Don Polye defeated him in 2002.
Bid for UN General Assembly President

If I had had the opportunity to speak at the funeral home, I could have talked about a time in New York when Renagi Renagi Lohia, wife of the PNG Ambassador to the United Nations wept bitterly after Somare lost the race for the mainly ceremonial role of President of the 46th UN General Assembly.
Mrs Lohia and her daughter were the only women in our small group as we stood at the gate of the UN building as Sir Michael Somare shook hands and calmly thanked foreign dignitaries who had supported him.
It could have been a perfect gift for us – the few Papua New Guineans if Somare had won for it was the month of September, 1991, our independence month.
Then we walked across the street to a restaurant and sat together at two tables to have lunch and discuss how we had lost, a race that we had all expected to win.
Sir Michael was the hot favourite from the start but managed only 47 votes against Saudi Arabia’s Samir Shihabi’s 83.
“We lost out of Europe or Africa,” Ambassador Lohia said bluntly. He believed many of the African leaders were bribed. “They were bought off.”
Education Minister Utula Samana blamed the defeat on the Gulf War coalition partners and western Europe.
“They voted for Saudi Arabia as a way of saying ‘thank you’ for the role it played in the Gulf War,” he said.
Most of our votes came from Asian countries, other Pacific Island states, the Caribbean and Latin America. The only definite vote from the Middle East was from Israel.
“The Middle East is always in the news. We want somebody impartial to deal with issues affecting Israel,” Minister Arie Tenne, Israel’s permanent representative to the United Nations, had told me at a pre-election gathering the night before.
Sir Michael remained calm as the results were declared. He sat through to the end as president-elect Samir Shihabi read a very long prepared speech in Arabic.
I was proud of Sir Michael’s great patience and diplomacy.
I did not want to read or see Sir Michael’s defeat on television that evening or read in the newspapers so I explored New York City. With me was Perai Manai from Tapini in Central province. He had come to America with Utula Samana.
First, we headed for the Umpire State Building which was always open until midnight. From the 102nd floor, we could see the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre shining white in the distance, the only building taller than any other on the New York landscape.
A decade later, the Twin Towers were blownup by Osama Bin Laden’s Islamic terrorist group al-Qaeda. They flew two hijacked passenger jets straight into the buildings on Sept 11, 2001, now referred to as 9/11.
America immediately declared war on terrorism. Osama Bin Laden the master mind evaded capture for almost a decade before he was located in Pakistan by the US military in May 2011 and shot dead.
Just like the memories of the Twin Towers keeps flashing in my mind, so too will the memory of Grand Chief Sir Michael Thomas Somare – not only among my generation but future generations to come.
His presence will remain with the people. Generations will continue to appreciate his efforts to unite a country of a thousand different tribes.
Here now is Pauline Wapen Mango with her poem: What it means to be a Papua New Guinean.
Independent and free
You helped us to see
What life could be
Living together in unity
A thousand tribes and me
Thank you, Grand Chief Sir Michael Thomas Somare.
From the children of Enga (and Papua New Guinea).

• Daniel Kumbon is a freelance writer.