Taim bilong kaikai

I reckon you thought I’d be talking about food; or a mumu or something to do with food. Nope, you’re wrong! I want to talk about something different; different in the sense that it is not food that I want to talk about here.

“…bus broke down on the highway. It would cost K3000 to fix the crack engine. Assist me with K1500, it is urgent!” The voice demanded into the phone.

“…have been in town for two weeks now and I have been going around empty stomach. Send me some money so I could find food and catch a PMV home.”  A pleading tone echoed.

“…got two vehicles here in my yard. One needs to be registered and should be up and running on the road. The other needs a bit of fixing. Will you assist?” A proud owner of the two useless vehicles asked.

Did you get the picture now? It is not food but now is taim bilon kaikai.

“…we’re in town and the boys have bought themselves beer. Because we’re many what we have won’t be enough for all. Please send us K50 to get a few more bottles.” A drunk blasted into the phone.

I guess by now all know what I meant by taim blong kaikai.

All intending candidates are bombarded by requests, mostly preposterous requests. And they will have to find ways to make their potential voters happy. A request that is not met by a favourable answer means loss of support. And it is bad; actually worse than bad.

It is any wonder, most politicians, when voted into parliament; spend more time enriching themselves and less and less time worrying about the state of the poverty in the country.

For an intending candidate, it is not an easy road. Even after much publicity and awareness about the dangers of kisim na votim the PNG voter, especially in the highlands, are more inclined to do just that.

This is why the election time, especiall for the highlands regions, is time bilong kaikai.

The challenge now is; how can we as educated people change this kind of mindset. Blogging, Facebooking etc won’t work. If they do it would only be minimal. We must go to where it matters and spend real time; I mean time in years between elections to educate people.

Easter gift for PNG?

April 9, 2012 

We all have heard of the phrase ‘blessing in disguise’, haven’t we? And often we see the fruits of this blessing sometime later. Then we would reflect on and comment either positively or negatively as per the results.

The way of men is to react to situations. And sometimes, instead of rectifying a problem we contribute towards its magnification. But in the end, lessons; presumably life changing lessons are learned.
In PNG, many now think the government’s actions of late have brought us turmoil. Many wonderful adjectives have been used to depict the gravity of our situation and the hopelessness generally felt across the nation. We’re right to express our dismay and disgust at a bad government; which only recently replaced another equally bad government. PNG is left now with no alternate government that is for the people and by the people. This is all the more reason for fresh elections; and the sooner the better. But hang on a minute!
The O’Neil-Namah government has successfully brainwashed the rural majority as the government for the people and by the people with their free-education policy and the yet-to-be-implemented free-health policy. The word now on the lips of many is; “Peter O’Neill is the right-man and we all should vote for his party this election”. This message has gone far and wide to all corners of the country.

It would take a great deal of time and effort to convince the rural majority that the O’Neill-Namah government is not the right government for PNG. Peter O’Neill has addressed an ongoing problem that has disadvantaged thousands of rural kids from advancing in their studies.

What is the blessing in disguise in the government’s move to defer the election by six months? Please don’t get me wrong! I am not a fan of the O’Neil-Namah government.

The rural majority will vote in new leaders. With the mindset they currently have on O’Neil-Namah government, you can be sure these gentlemen will form the new government. So we need time. We need time to attack the government and the way it does business. We must reach out to the people through some form of awareness programs or other means that can effectively change mindsets and perceptions. A deferral of six months, if the government is adamant, is ample time to damage the government’s reputation. While making noise in Port Moresby is good, it is just not enough to change mindsets in the rural areas. We have to be smart; may be smarter than Mr O’Neill. It is time now to take the message to the masses and let them know who Messrs O’Neil and Namah really are.

So the gift for us this Easter, if the government stands by its decision to defer the election by six months would be ‘time’. Time we will have to tarnish its reputation and integrity. Remember PDM (People’s Democratic Movement)? It only needs time to gradually kill the party.

He out did them all

In the confusion
On the mount of our fathers,
All, they tried to be the baddest

When the night's eye watched
When the day's star gazed
Even when night's chorus was silent

Out they parade those things,
Things that make them bad
And onward they mightily marched

Amongst them, stood one,
With a high head, he was stronger
And he out did them all

His name, heard they in the south.
In the north, he flew with a blaze
But into heaven, he couldn't make it

And so the story was told
To them that will hear
And be wary of the one

He out did them all
........................................................

With rather strong political connotations

Who is in our house?

Of late, PNG's government has abused our parliament to satisfy their crave for power. I hope this poem reminds us of the imminent danger we face in continuing to allow this government rule.
...............

Who is in the house,
Built by our fathers;
Did I see many a mouse;
Where are our mothers?
Their songs I hear not!

Where are they sheltering,
From stormy knights;
Aren't the wrinkles of love,
Already in sight;
O' don't they need a dove?

Who is in the house,
On the mount of our fathers;
Who, our mothers did arouse,
From their slumbers;
Did the children hear them wake?

And the children;
Where are they playing;
Did I hear them say;
We are still sleeping,
 Into the youth of of day?
----

Jeffrey Mane Febi.

Dreams of a place

Our political leaders fight for power while the little people continue to suffer. Our suffering seem endless but certainly our dreams have not expired and will give us the strength to walk on. How we get to where we want to go and what kind of PNG we want to see then is in our dreams and no one can steal it. So don't give up! Tireless hand (Time) continues and it is up to us to become agents for change, even if it means to suffer as we make our way slowly to that destination/PNG we would like to have.
-------------------




Did the play of mighty tongues,
Harass your wretched heart once,
Twice, then more than many times;
Then your dream haunts,
While, away tireless hand chimes?
  
Did the play of mighty tongues,
Your dream on a journey forces,
When the storms were unkind;
Then send it on unplanned courses,
On many a different wind?

I too have a heart broken,
With a dream restless and old;
That yearns to journey to a place,
Gentle whispers, us have told
Is full of wondrous grace.

Will you join me on a journey to this
Noble place without a name;
A name you and I would give,
While we play our own game
And live and let live?

But I can't promise a smooth trip;
Our dreams, our wrath will keep,
And our hearts will find a way.
We may all the way creep,
But surely we will not stray.

Let the rhythm of our hearts,
And song of a place without name,
Deliver us strength to sweat.
Getting there is our noble aim
And this we will not regret. 

Hey, did I see a flicker in your heart,
Through holes in the wretched one?
The flicker in my heart dance,
And though there’ll be no sun,
We surely will make our advance.

A place without name we seek;
We must not be meek;
A place without name we seek;
We must no be weak?
A place without name we seek.