What are they thinking?

 
What are they thinking?

First: the extraordinary front of a national MP who goes on Tokbak to complain about a mysterious ‘syndicate’ stealing monies from the Tenders Board. Calling for the removal of the Telefomin MP, Peter Iwei, who says he left a K1 million cheque in a taxi this week. Sour grapes from a man who has one of the muddiest reputations in the country? Jealous he didn’t get a cut?

 

Or is this a smokescreen sounding like a B-flick about cabals of faceless thieves? And if so, what is he thinking? ‘This will surely deflect accusations from me!...People will start to talk about me as a man of integrity.’ Anywhere else in the world it would seem to be high camp. Especially on email correspondent who writes me:

..I am pretty sure if someone looks deeper into this, the Minister's finger prints will be found on the monies in the Ban k accounts and will surely be there with as the sales of a ship for some K6 million and also awarding of road and many major infrastructural contracts in ENBP to SWT a company that the Minister also has shares or majority ownership but in trust held by the a frontman concealing the Minister's holding any shares in there.

 

Second: Someone working for me puts K500 in his rucksack meant for a company purchase, and it disappears. He tells me it’s been stolen from the back pocket of his rucksack, which he finds zipped up again and still holding some of his own money. Miraculously. I call him a thief and a liar. He files a complaint with the police, who call me in, and away from my desk, so this man can have the chance to retell the same improbable and convoluted story while the police themselves snicker. What is he thinking? I’m going to forgive and forget (that he has stolen before, and from others as well)? That he will clear his name?

 

Third: The idiotic discussion of ‘fair play’ and democracy being conducted by those people opposed to reserved seats for women in Parliament. Their point is that special favours are a bad precedent, and undermine the democracy of the PNG constitution. Like a High School civics lesson, it’s all in quasi-legalese that skates above the daily evidence of antidemocratic reality, and sounds vaguely like the arguments made against affirmative action in the USA, against giving the vote to women and former slaves, and most of like the defensive roll-up-the red-carpet position taken by elites everywhere: Hey, if we can do it, anyone can. It’s too early for women, men are saying---in a curious echo of Australians thirty five years ago. But who amongst us is saying that there are no deserving women? That the system works fairly? That it's a meritocracy?? That women really have the same chance to stand for office, support an expensive campaign, or even vote for candidates as individuals?

 
 

As a result, and effectively trivializing the issue of women’s rights, some ‘youth’ groups are calling for their own reserved seats. And so the following letter to the editor is circulated amongst PNG women and women’s rights NGO’s this week:

What age group are we looking at when we say youths? Under the law, human species over the age of 18 have the right to vote and stand for election. Thus they are regarded as adults. I believe if the bill is passed then we will only allow for people under the age of 18 to secure the youths seat. That will create another legal issue, contravening [sic] the Constitution concerning the age bracket for holding public office and contest for election.

I personally do not support the women seat. Who are they to claim a special treatment. PNG has a living democracy that promotes equal participation. Women are now entering jobs that were once dominated by men, as we read all the time in the media. We are not like some Asian countries like Japan where they have glass roof that stops women after they are married and have children.

PNG women's limit is the sky, and they are at par with men. For them to cry around for special women seat in parliament is not right. They must equally compete with men to secure public office. I have also realised that women are now becoming major culprits in the down fall of PNG, like the women lawyer who impersonate to be a lawyer and pave way for notorious Kapris to escape from Bomana and also the Treasury and Finance scandal involving women and in banks as well.

 The notion that women are the leader of household and common perception that educating a women is educating the nation is no longer in existence [sic]. Women are now some of the notorious criminals, murderers, rapists etc under the pretence of women characterists [sic]. So get lost, all women folks in PNG.

M.Y.

 

Fourth: A worker rents a vehicle for one of our projects, crashes and dents the fender. He takes it to a wantok mechanic who creates a K22,000 quote for repairs. Because it’s the highlands, we are expected to play the game without questioning motive. Maybe negotiate for a lesser sum, but never call anyone on it. And suffer an infinite variety of strangers telling us what we ‘shoulda’ done, while the reckless driver gets off with barely a reprimand. You should, he shoulda… and the culprit remains blameless. His clan may pay some, his employers some, and his friend the mechanic may ask for less. But I suspect in the end this driver will actually get a cut of the kitty when everything’s settled.

 

Fifth: a variant of You shoulda: The people who chronically say, I was going to warn you. After the fact. And my favourite examples come from retail companies who do the same thing. A certain solar power business has taken something just shy of K30,000 from us for 4 sets of various size solar panels we have tried to install in remote East Sepik villages. After a couple of inverter and battery adjustments, each at the cost of sending someone back to the field, we are told, incredibly, that, after all, we never had the right DC lights or cables or solar battery—and that all of these should have been purchased in the first place. Thanks for that. Wasn’t that your job? And for not bothering to produce manuals, either.

 

 

Sixth, and final peeve: Security guards who run your life. They not only tell you where and when to park, but they approach you after the engine’s off and doors locked to request that you turn the car around, or park it at another angle, because, for some reason having to do with symmetry or refined logistics (it’s a tough job), your parking skills offend his sensibilities.