Congratulations Ishmael Toroama

THE people of Bougainville have spoken through the ballot papers.
Former Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) commander Ishmael Toroama was declared President-elect yesterday following an election process that began in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB) six weeks ago with 24 candidates contesting the presidential election.
The 2020 presidential and parliamentary election saw 440 candidates contesting the 40 seats in the Bougainville House of Representatives.
The Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) was established in 2000 following a peace agreement signed between the National Government and the BRA, a guerrilla movement, and others.
Elections for the first Autonomous Government were held in May and June 2005; Joseph Kabui was elected president.
He passed away in 2008 and vice-president John Tabinaman became acting president.
This led to a special presidential election in November and December 2008.
James Tanis was declared winner over second-runner Sam Akoitai.
Tanis served an interim term, completing Kabui’s scheduled term before the presidential election of 2010.
He was defeated by John Momis who served two terms as president (2010-2015 and 2015-2020).
Bougainville, a mineral-rich and lush group of islands, has developed little since a decade-long civil war that claimed as many as 20,000 lives came to an end in 1998. The civil war commenced in 1989.
There was much suffering especially with innocent people killed and properties destroyed.
The effects of that civil war are still there in Bougainville, and will be there for many years to come.
The conflict was largely fought over how the profits from the lucrative Panguna gold and copper mine on Bougainville should be shared and about the environmental damage the mining had caused.
Last year’s non-binding independence referendum was part of the peace process that ended the conflict.
The Bougainvillean reported in July that Toroama’s body still bears the scars of many hard-fought battles.
By the time the Bougainville Peace Agreement was negotiated, Toroama, had already been injured.
However, he was also a signatory of the peace agreement.
Toroama and his ABG team will now negotiate the outcome of the 2019 Bougainvillean independence referendum, which saw 98.3 per cent of voters supporting independence from PNG.
Achieving independence for Bougainville is something he wants to see happen within 2-3 years through a process of consultation with the Government.
Toroama has since been promoting peace, and was heavily involved in cocoa farming.
He’s even optimistic of producing his own chocolate from the rich Bougainville cocoa, ardent of having his own Amataa Chocolate on the market.
He wants to uproot corruption in government and its systems.
He told The National shortly after his declaration that he will ensure there are external and internal audits into ABG and its systems to kill and uproot corruption.
He visibly shares a passion for peace and will work on empowering the Bougainville police service.
He said: “I believe if we strengthen the rule of law, it will attract investors into our region. It will give them the confidence to invest.”
As the saying ‘the pen is mightier than the sword’, Toroama is a fighter who once ruled with a gun but this time round, he knows it is the pen that will bring him peace and development for his people.