Right
now Port Moresby is hosting couple of international sporting events aside from
the African Caribbean Pacific (ACP) Leadership meet. It is a great honour for PNG
to be given such responsibilities. Events of this level and caliber no doubt
have the potential to propel PNG into the international limelight. Yet it is
disheartening to note that all these are taking place in the midst of a
political crisis involving the current Prime Minister.
Away
from the sporting and meeting venues life in most parts of Port Moresby are far
remote from the images that will remain in the minds of the visitors. Know that
this is not a true reflection of Port Moresby and its people. One will have to
venture to the periphery of the city to appreciate the true extent of
development and its impact on the lives of its citizens. Beyond the flashy cars
and state of the art stadiums life is synonymous with Port Moresby’s uncompromising humidity. Police are on full patrol dispersing T-Gas canisters at will to
remove buai vendors, informal peddlers and mobile traders apparently for the
convenience of our visitors. It seems this practice has never ceased and may
continue into the foreseeable future. So much so that people in the city have
gotten used to it. By now I am convinced that hosting international events in
Port Moresby or wherever is not good for informal economy participants. It
seems that it is now a routine for government and police to include in their
strategy measures to keep all informal economic activities out of sight from
the visiting dignitaries. I wonder if the new government that will come into
power after the 2017 general election will recognize and showcase the myriad of
informal economic activities to our APEC friends who will be visiting us in
2018. Or will they follow the rest with the usual “shot in the foot” antic. I
am compelled at this stage to even dare the new government to take on this
challenge. On the same token I invite the visitors to explore other parts of
the city that may be termed as "off-limits” if you want to truly understand the
life of the people of this city and country.
As
the “big NCDC Bus” and official vehicles transporting the visiting teams for the OFC 2016 and the ACP delegates trudges
along the highly priced fly-over bridge with police escort; below a vibe of
activities oblivious to our visitor’s knowledge is on full throttle at the
disgust of the city authority and the government. All these are happening while
tinted vehicles depicting writings and logos of the ACP Leaders meet driven by
police officers can be spotted at various locations within the city. A
flashback to the 2015 Pacific Games and a reminder of what we will expect when
the APEC 2018 Summit kicks off. At this stage many of us are wondering how the
government is able to accommodate these events when the nation is desperately struggling
to stay afloat financially.
For
the many mothers, fathers and youths of the city that thrive on informal
economy to make a living the recent comment by Minister Gore, who is
responsible for Community Development and informal economy to remove informal
market vendors infront of her department’s office without offering alternatives is a major setback. The
Minister’s comment pretty much sums up the attitude of this government towards
the informal economy. If I can recall correctly during this year’s US Sponsored
“Women’s Forum” she mentioned the Informal Sector Development & Control Act
2004 in her speech. Her recent comment reinforces the view that this
government’s approach to the informal economy is nothing short of hypocritical.
I wonder how they plan to grow the SME Sector with this sorts of attitude. If
anything the construction of the fly-over bridge was an ingenious strategy of
the government to give the visitors an elevated view of a city that is progressing
yet much of its development is creating chaos in the lives of many struggling
families.
For
the next 2 weeks or so our international friends will get the chance to see
Port Moresby but not PNG. Port Moresby is the melting pot of PNG but it is not
the microcosm of PNG. Life in Port Moresby is only a glimpse of a nation on the
verge of an uprising. Across the country the people have been awakened by the
student’s awareness to the abuse of power that this government has covertly
hidden from them. The people may look as if they are taking it easy but in
their mind they know that this nation is at the cross road.
To
all our visitors you are welcome but know that not all is well although the
Prime Minister claims otherwise.
No comments:
Post a Comment