Buai ban a test of Parkop’s mettle

 “LEADERSHIP is not about being popular all the time.

“Sometimes, leadership means accepting that what you do may be unpopular and may well lose you the next elections. 

“But if you truly believe that what you are doing is good for your country, you must be prepared to lose the next elections.”

These words could not have come from a more inspirational leader than Myanmar’s democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

Giving a lecture on leadership at the Singapore Management University last Sunday, Suu Kyi said that leaders should respect their people, work to get their support and fulfil their needs.

A good leader will not necessarily be a popular one, she added.

“That is one of the tests of true leadership – whether they’d rather be reelected or they’d rather do the right thing and secondly, you have to respect the people truly, not pretend to respect them.”

Wise words indeed, from a leader who truly has the heart and mind for the people of Myanmar.

Papua New Guinea’s new generation of political leaders should take heed of Suu Kyi’s inspirational speech on leadership.

One of our few politicians who understands good leadership is National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop.

He recently made a decision to impose a total ban on betel nuts being sold or chewed in the capital.

It is proving to be an unpopular decision which could have dire consequences for his re-election bid in 2017.

“It is a tough decision but one that must be made, and I know my political rivals are trying to capitalise on it to gear up for the future,” he said. 

“But this will not deter my determination to do what is good for our city and our people. 

“If I was selfish and just worry about politics, I should not be a leader and those of my rivals inciting these people should be ashamed of themselves for being selfish, shortsighted and merely seeking political point-scoring,” Parkop said after rejecting a petition to reconsider the ban from betel nuts vendors on Monday.

They are now threatening to take out a court injunction to stop the ban from starting next Tuesday, but the governor remains unperturbed by their protest.

Complaints from many of his constituents have also been ignored.

Indeed, it takes a true leader to make such an unpopular decision for the common good.

And Parkop is prepared to lose the next elections to fulfil one of his goals to make the nation’s capital a cleaner, healthier and beautiful city.

Like the NCD governor, former firebrand politician Sir Iambakey Okuk was well known for making unpopular decisions, some of which led to his eventual downfall. 

The late elder statesman would justify his actions by saying that a politician’s prime role was to make decisions, whether they are popular or not, right or wrong. 

He despised politicians and bureaucrats who were indecisive and displayed a lack of leadership.

Some of the recent controversial decisions by the O’Neill Government may prove costly for the parties in his coalition come the 2017 general election. 

In particular, the nation will know by then whether the Government’s decision to take over Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML) and the PNG Sustainable Development Program (PNGSDP) is the right one or not.

Only time will tell but it didn’t help matters for Prime Minister Peter O’Neill when the authoritative Catholic Church, the largest Christian denomination in the country, this week opposed the Government’s takeover of OTML and PNGSDP.

“The Catholic Bishops of Papua New Guinea, in solidarity with thousands of ordinary people throughout PNG, want to express profound disappointment with what our leaders in Government have done by expropriating OTML, which could result in the cancellation of the PNGSDP,” the church said in a statement.

Nonetheless, O’Neill is adamant the transaction will proceed unimpeded and he wasted no time in appointing a new OTML board yesterday. 

We hope the prime minister will keep his word and do the right thing by the people of Western and the rest of the country.

Only time will tell.