New Ireland MPs should unite now

The National Letters

I AM calling on the three MPs from New Ireland to think seriously about prioritising human resource development in the province for the sake of our children who will be our leaders of tomorrow. Governor Sir Julius Chan, Kavieng MP Ian Ling-Stuckey and Namatanai MP Walter Schnaubelt must unite.  They should not allow their personal and political differences to get the better of them.  We can see the division among our leaders that has been causing disunity among the people for years and this has to stop. It is counter-productive to our efforts to foster unity and prosperity. It keeps us from focusing on the important things that we can do together as a people to move our province forward.I am urging Sir Julius, Ling-Stuckey and Schnaubelt to work together and inject some of the millions of kina from the Lihir royalty funds to meet the cost of educating our children in order to improve our human resources. Much can be achieved within a few years if our leaders unite. Therefore, we need a strong, bipartisan political front and political will to make this happen.
I am urging our MPs to consider these:

  • REPLACE the tertiary tuition fee subsidy policy with a fully-paid tuition fee policy. This should cover students’ accommodation as well.
    At higher education institutions, where the cost is usually unbearably high, leaders should bear the burden;
  • KEEP the subsidised fee policy for the elementary to grade 12, including for registered life-skills and adult literacy training schools and flexible open and distance education (Fode).
    At this level, the cost of education can be relatively easy to share between them and the parents/guardians.
  • ADOPTING these two policies will instil a sense of certainty and security in the minds of our children and their families.

They would know that their leaders are behind them through their education journey;

  • THIS will be an innovative and pragmatic way to establish a win-win approach to the notion that education is a shared responsibility and a right for every child.
  • IT will also be a way of addressing the socio-economic problems that we face, because we will be “killing two birds with one stone”;
  • THE Fode centre in Kavieng town should be renovated, expanded and refurbished, including the public library, to cater for the growing desire to attain knowledge among our children; and,
  • FODE centres in Konos and Namatanai should be properly funded as well to cater for the major shift towards Fode to support the Government’s wishes.

I believe that pumping money into our children’s education will be an investment worth far more than every single kina used. As one of America’s presidents once said: “If you pump your money into your head, no one can take it away from you.”

Tasin Tulasoi,
Kavieng