Citizens challenged

Letters

IT is great to see learned and ordinary Papua New Guineans discussing the need for leaders to uphold principles of good governance and the rule of law at this time.
That is all very well.
I then ask this questions for us the citizens to consider.
Do you, the learned citizens and ordinary folks alike, uphold the principles of good governance and the rule of law every day?
What is your backyard like? Do you teach and educate your children to be good citizens?
Do you take measures to stop any form of bad conduct by members of your neighbourhood, suburb, council, tribe, local level government and district?
Did you the learned and ordinary citizen stop any form of undue influence like block voting etc in the last national election in 2017?
Did you stop your tribes’ people and wantoks (relatives) from accepting election gifts in return for votes and urge them to vote according to their conscience?
Have you been supporting a candidate in the elections with your resources and when he won, did you expect something in return in the form of contract and did you get? If you did get something from the public pursue courtesy of the MP you supported, were not aware that you are involved in a corrupt practice?
Did you expect and allow the MP to come and participate in a community ceremony in your area by him giving money and gifts sourced with public funds out of the DSIP?
Did you stop election fraud and vote rigging that were so prevalent in the electorates of some of your preaching the gospel of good governance and rule of law on Facebook?
Did you report such unlawful and corrupt practices?
Do you attend the parents and citizens’ meetings of your primary and secondary schools and ensure the school board and management are not colluding and stealing TFF funds?
Do you hold your LLG president and town mayor accountable to do things according to law and also not be mere rubber stamp of the local MP?
Do you tell your son, daughter, brother, sister, cousin, niece, nephew, tribesman or relative who has gained corruptly from the Public purse to stop the unlawful and corrupt practice?
Have you reported your wantoks who are corrupt to the police fraud squad, auditor-general, Public Accounts Committee or the Ombudsman Commission?
Did you give a public servant, nurse, policeman, custom officer, immigration officer “lunch money” to get services rendered quickly to you?
I can list more questions for us citizens to ponder upon but I’ll stop here.
My point is that citizens are also contributing the breakdown in the principles of good governance and rule of law in their settings.
If we as citizens of our great country are serious about creating a nation where good governance and rule of law is respected and the nation progresses, we must all down our part individually and collectively.
Getting rid of one mandated government tomorrow will not change everything overnight. We have been changing government’s mid-term since the first case in 1980.
Have these many changes improved the need good governance and the result for the rule of law?
The answer is no.
Then why not? I think we need to change our practices first.
Making public statements in the media and Facebook will not change our country.
We have to walk the talk. Go to the office your MP and register your issue verbally or in writing.
Write to the Prime Minister and highlight the issues you have?
Advise him and his ministers?
Do we do that?
When the MP, Ministers and executive government don’t listen to you vote them out in the next election.
Let us be realistic and practical by doing our bit.

Proactive Agent,
Port Moresby