Brendo – the greatest friend

By YVONNE HAIP
THE smile lighting up his face outshone the fiery afternoon sun that would soon sink beneath the blanket of the sea over Port Moresby’s Fairfax Harbour.
Like a ripple effect, that smile brought on many more smiles from the faces of those that had gathered by the waterfront as acting managing director of PNG Ports Corporation Limited, Stanley Alphonse, took to the small podium outside the company head office to thank staff for their exceptional performances throughout the years.
“To Brendo, the greatest friend…” were the first words he said, “And to the EMT (executive management team), line managers and the hardworking staff of this great company.”
To others, it would mean less, but to Brendo Aroko, who has served 22 years with PNG Ports as the CEO’s steward (formerly messenger), it was the first time a boss had called his name prior to those of senior managers.
“I am a tea boy but when the boss acknowledges my efforts during company gatherings, he makes me proud of my job. The CEO is a good man,” he said after the event.
Brendo, as he is known by all, started work with PNG Ports (then known as the PNG Harbours Board on March 15, 1994, as a janitor.
His positive attitude to work saw him being promoted, after a year, to be the CEO’s messenger. The man in charge back then was Charles Punaha.
Leaving his broom and cleaning utensils behind, he relocated to the comforts of the second floor of the Pacific MMI Building in downtown Port Moresby where the CEO’s office was at that time.
As well as being the boss’s tea boy, he ran errands such as shopping and banking, and did all the extra little things that the CEO’s personal assistant did not have the time for.
His journey began many years ago when Brendo left his remote Kuru village which lies somewhere between the Okapa and Lufa districts in Eastern Highlands.
Running away from a place riddled with tribal warfare, he and his parents first travelled to Buka, then Rabaul, and later Kimbe, in search of opportunities.
Their move did not end there as his family decided to leave the New Guinea Islands and move closer to home to the Ramu valley that borders Madang, Morobe and Eastern Highlands. As a teenager, Brendo got his first job cutting sugar cane at the Ramu Sugar plantation.
After saving a little from his wages, he travelled to the ‘big city’ and thanks to a wantok who was already a janitor at PNG Ports, Brendo embarked on an unanticipated journey.
Since then, he has been tea boy to 11 different CEO’s – Punaha, Joseph Kumgal, Greg Emelio, Robbie Kaivepa, Steve Tupa, Luke Niap, Joshua Taruna, Kepas Wali, Robert Nilkare who was caretaker until Brian Riches came along, and now Alphonse.
Brendo has also served tea for many board chairmen, board members, cabinet ministers, members of Parliament, other government department heavies and many more who have visited the CEO’s office and PNG Ports’ boardroom over the years. He even served tea for the nation’s founding father, Sir Michael Somare, when he once visited PNG Ports.
Of all the CEO’s that Brendo served, he spoke fondly of the only expatriate he worked for, Brian Riches, and of course, Alphonse who unfailingly acknowledges Brendo.
“I used to really like Brian Riches,” he said, and after a chuckle, added: “He used to call me boss, he was my boss, instead he called me the boss.”
Brendo, an avid Seventh Day Adventist church elder, enjoys his work, is committed to his church and lives simply.
His day begins at 2am when he has morning devotion and then follows a daily exercise routine until 6am where he listens to the news on the radio while getting ready for work.
By 6.30am he is out the gate and walks (which is still part of his exercise routine) from Saraga at Six Mile to Four Mile. After the 30 minute walk, he catches a bus to downtown Port Moresby where the PNG Ports head office is located.
He arrives before 8am and leaves after 5pm daily. Brendo made a decision 22 years ago that he would not let his boss down, and for that reason, he has turned up for work every single day – never a day did he skip work.
He has three children, David, aged 19, Solomon, 17 and Bathsheba, 8, who all live with their mum, Dorcas, in Goroka and attend school, something Brendo himself never had the opportunity to do. His biggest dream is to help his children achieve their dreams. He lives near his church at Six Mile in a house he built utilising his salaries. He occupies the top part of the house while the bottom section is rented out.
Not only that, Brendo also owns a piece of prime land at Rainbow (Gerehu Stage 1) that he bought for K11,000 when PNG Ports put it up for sale by tender under its staff housing scheme.
He thanked PNG Ports for giving him access to that ‘better opportunity’ his parents had sought long ago.
To best sum up his 22 years, he said: “When they (bosses) are happy, I am happy.”
“We must all humble ourselves, be obedient, dress decently, earn the trust of our superiors, and do our jobs well.
“At the end of the day, it is not what your boss thinks of you but how you feel about yourself when you go to sleep. If you are satisfied with the day’s work then you have earned your pay packet. If not then you are either lying or stealing.”
Brendo plans to retire soon and return to the village he left so many years ago.

• Yvonne Haip is Media and Communications Officer with PNG Ports Corporation.