Soso urges Goroka Show at NSI Show stage at NSI

 Eastern Highlands Governor Julie Soso is calling on the management of the National Sports Institute to revoke the decision it made not be the host for the Goroka Show.

She said Goroka Show was an ongoing annual event that attracted people from overseas as well as locals, which benefited the people of Eastern Highlands.

“We have more than 200 tourists who have booked in advance,” she said.

“The hotels are all booked, our small SME people – that’s their time they make money – spin-offs, and so nobody is going to stop that show.

“Right now we know that the next show will be in NSI and it will happen on the usual dates. It happens on the 13th, 14th and 15th and 16th is the independent anniversary.”

Soso has called on the Minister for Sports to reconsider the decision.

The chairperson of the Goroka Show Karyn Hargreaves received a letter from the NSI management saying the organisers should have a venue to host the show. 

Hargreaves said it was not easy to find land overnight.

Manager of NSI Janet Gimots told The National that the executive director of Sports Foundation and the Minister for Sports would decide on the matter.  The Show is a well-known tribal gathering and cultural event in Papua New Guinea.

“It is a Sing-sing held every year close to the country’s Independence Day (16 September) in the town of Goroka.

“About 100 tribes arrive to show their music, dance and culture.

“The festival started in the mid-1950s as an initiative of Australian Kiaps.

“In recent years it has become a major attraction for both national and international tourists and remains the largest cultural event.”