PNG’s Kevin Rudd wants to meet ex-PM Kevin Rudd

By ZACHERY PER
EASTERN Highland teenager Kevin Rudd wants to someday meet his namesake, the former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
“My father would tell me about my namesake whenever we find leisure time in the family. I want to meet him one day – whether it is in Papua New Guinea or Australia. I want to meet him and shake hands with him.”
According to his father Esau Kitigi from Lufa district, the former Australian PM was visiting PNG in 2008 and went to Goroka to have a look at the Goroka Provincial Hospital on March 7.
It was the same day his son was born.
Esau recalls how the Eastern Highlands referral hospital was so crowded that day, with dignitaries from PNG and Australia accompanying PM Rudd on his hospital tour.
When his son was born a few minutes later, “my wife and I wasted no time in naming him Kevin Rudd.”

“ My father would tell me about my namesake whenever we find leisure time in the family. I want to meet him one day – whether it is in Papua New Guinea or Australia. I want to meet him and shake his hands.”

Now 15, Kevin Rudd Esau has become a minor celebrity in their Degi village outside the Lufa station in Eastern Highlands. Not only is he named after a well-known Australian prime minister, he also knows that the name he has is respected by many.
The younger Rudd is attending the Lufa Primary School and will be in Grade Eight this year. Dad Esau says his son has been studying hard in school, trying to perfect his command of English in anticipation of that day when he will meet his namesake.
And his Australian namesake has not forgotten about him.
According to dad Esau, ex-PM Rudd has been sending photos and birthday cards to the youngster.
When Rudd was Australian Foreign Affairs Minister, he sent a Happy Birthday card wishing his namesake a happy third birthday.
He sent the card to the remote Degi village in Lufa to celebrate that special day for the boy.
It read: “To Kevin Rudd, Happy Birthday Kevin Rudd. Be a good boy. When you go to school work hard. And love your family.”
Elated parents Esau and Lina Kitgi saw it as a huge honour and were so happy for the acknowledgement given to their son from a well-known figure not only in Australia but also in the world. They too are hoping to one day witness the meeting between the two Rudds.
Kevin Michael Rudd, born Sept 21, 1957, has three children of his own: Jessica, Marcus and Nicholas.
He served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010, and from June 2013 to September 2013.
He was the leader of the Australian Labour Party.
Today, he is serving as Australia’s ambassador to the United States. Rudd completed his BA in 1978, deferring his honours component for a year during which time he took a study trip to Taiwan.
He is well-known for his knowledge of the Chinese language and Chinese history, becoming proficient in Mandarin. His Chinese name is Lù Kèwén.
For 15-year-old Rudd in Lufa, he may not speak fluent Mandarin or have a Chinese name, but he knows that the Kevin Rudd name is well-known around the world, and he dearly wants to someday meet the man who made that name so famous.