Province wants to secede as PNG continues to fail
Ministers involved in crime, says bagman Kapris

Three-fifths of five-eighths of nothing ..…

BY PAUL OATES

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN (1706-90) said it first and he said it best: "Yes, we must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”

Part of Bougainville already believes it’s on the road to nationhood, and it seems some New Irelanders also think this is the way to go.

But before any further split PNG happens, those promoting the break up (as a remedy to produce better times) should ponder on what has caused the current impasse.

Clearly, ineffectual leadership and massive amounts of unprosecuted corruption at all levels of government have resulted in diverting national resources away from desperately needed services.

A few people have obviously benefited at the expense of many; and this situation has been allowed to continue for many years – sometimes by the very leaders who now suggest regional autonomy will be better for their people.

While everyone in PNG understands the visible effects of the problems, few have come out and said clearly and persuasively what they would do to fix them.

If the solution has been too hard, or is far too electorally painful, for current leaders to contemplate, how are smaller fractions going to be any more effective?

More of the same will produce no different result.

Where are the politicians with guts enough to stand up and publicly denounce what is clearly wrong with PNG today?

Plenty are prepared to talk about what is morally right, but who has actually achieved any results?

The people responsible for PNG's current woes must be identified, denounced and officially charged by public authorities. Anything else cannot and will not work.

So what will change with potentially smaller, fragmented, PNG autonomous regions?

Three fifths of five eighths of nothing!

Comments

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Papua Tauna Natuna

Paul and Norman are both right in some aspects. The situation today is that PM Somare cannot now provide the leadership PNG so desperately needs and must be replaced immediately, before the 2012 national polls.

The problem is that Somare has gone passed his use by date and there are some good competent leaders to take over from him.

Puka Temu, the present deputy PM, can take over now and, failing that, Dame Carol Kidu can be the first woman PM that PNG ever had.

She is so competent that she will do a better job than Michael Somare or the rest of the male dominated PNG Haus Tambaran put together.

Norman Richardson

Fragmenting the country will make it an easy target for the biggest pirates on earth. The push to fragmentation comes from those with an interest in carving up spoils or who have not enough vision to to see the wolf at the door.

When the inevitable collapse/dictatorship happens, those responsible will have retreated to somewhere like Switzerland or Paraguay with their Swiss bank accounts bulging, leaving their constituents/parishioners bereft, broke and wondering how it all happened.

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