A voice for the voiceless, that is the slogan of a candidate who knows a lot about using his voice. He is none other than local and international reggae artist Anslom Nakikus, and he is contesting the Moresby North West seat in the 2022 National General Election. Nakikus, who comes from Matupit in East New Britain Province, always had an interest in people’s rights which he channels through his music and now he has decided to take it the next level by trying his hand at politics, so that he could be able to help the people from Waigani. “My songs have always been about addressing social issues in the country. Politics, fighting corruption and many others are real life issues as it hurts me to see our people suffering.” Nakikus aims to bring about social change to the community starting with the main issues and that’s to create more job opportunities, generating more small businesses for a sustainable economy and to create more housing schemes that is affordable. “These are some of my main goals in which I wish to achieve. As for job opportunities, there are a lot of people out there, especially those degree holders, that are still unemployed because there is nothing for them out there.” In addition to this, Nakikus also expressed his concerns for housing problems in the city. He said that it is quite hard for people to find affordable homes to rent and purchase these days with most of the working class ending up renting accommodation in settlements.   “These are real life issues that have always been here for many years now and this is why places like the North West electorate needs serious leadership.” Nakikus, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, also majored in Language and Literature and has a Postgraduate Diploma in Education added to his academic achievements, and knows he has enough experience and qualifications to carry on such a role if he wins this year’s election. “If voted, I will make sure as part of my duty that I work closely with the NCD Governor in making sure that the people’s cries are being heard and that social change is brought to them. I believe it is now time we all work together to bring about change.” Nakikus will be contesting as an independent candidate and is amongst twenty-seven other candidates running for the Moresby Northwest seat. He encouraged every voter to make the right choice and to know the candidates well before voting them. He also urged voters to respect the candidates including their posters and other properties.

A boy’s dormitory at Porgera Secondary School in Enga Province, got burnt down last Tuesday by students as a result of been denied food supplies. Deputy Principal, Mr. Amos Amail, said that the boarding students had no food provided for them on Monday and Tuesday which led them to burning down the dormitory out of frustration. Mr. Amail said that there was no valid reason nor an explanation to why the school mess had no food supplies to feed the students, but blamed it on the school principal for failing to provide the food rations. “A week before the incident occurred, the students were sent home by our Principal due to on-going tribal fights advising them to stay home for a week. When the students returned back, they saw that there was no food provided for them for two days causing them to burn down the dorm.” He said the students responsible were arrested that day by the police but were later released an hour after whilst two students are still locked up. He added that the dormitory which caters for thirty two students will now be an issue in terms of accommodation. “For now, most of the students have fled and are currently away from school due to the tribal fights so most of them are not attending classes at the moment.” Amail however expressed his concern as to how these particular students will be accommodated once they return back to school. He added that despite the tribal fights, classes are still on- going with only a few students attending. He said this issue is out of their hands and cannot force students to attend classes. He hopes the situation can be slowed down so that it doesn’t affect the students’ studies. Photo credit: Sherii Wembii FB account

The National Souths Basketball League (NSBL) are now preparing for next year’s championship after completing their 2022 Championship last month at the Taurama Aquatic Centre in Port Moresby. President of the NSBL, Mr. Silas Nicky said that a total of twenty four teams, both women and men's teams have taken part in the Championship. The teams include Kutubu Lakers, Mendi Menjals, EMK City Rangers, Usano Sura Souths, Kondo East Souths, Sumale Souths, Mayawala Souths- Pom, Yasuku Hela Souths, Giru Souths, Enso Souths, POMBIS Souths and Mix Mates Hagen. “The winner from this year’s championship was the Kutubu Lakers where both the men and women’s team came first, walking away with K25, 000 each.” According to Mr Nicky, this is an annual event with now more teams expressing their interest to take part. He said that six more teams have shown interest to take part next year. “We are now planning on hosting provincial games to select the best squads who will take part in next year’s championship.” Mr Nicky advised that the program for next year’s event will be announced once all details have been confirmed. The NSBL president further added that they are now looking forward for next year which looks to be a bigger event compared to this year’s championship.

Schools in Morobe Province will come to a halt tomorrow following the arrival of the casket of the Late Deputy Prime Minister, Sam Basil, in Lae, Morobe Province. This was the announcement made by the Morobe Education Advisor, Mr. Keith Taugui. Mr Taugui said schools from the two districts Lae and Huon Gulf will be taking part in the program for the welcoming of the casket of the late DPM Basil. “All elementary and secondary schools from these two districts will take part in welcoming the casket of the late DPM at Nadzab Airport where they will all be prepared and lined up before the casket arrives tomorrow morning.” He added that the students are now preparing for tomorrow’s arrival where each student will be holding flowers to escort the casket as the convoy proceeds tomorrow. Taugui also said that this was a sad moment for the people of Morobe, and as part of the students and staff paying their respect, all schools within Morobe Province will shut down classes for two days. "There will be no classes tomorrow and Thursday however schools will resume on Friday," Mr Taugui said.

Buk Bilong Pikinini will be launching seven of its' books come first week of August. These books will be launched under the “When I grow up” thirteen Book Series which will officially be launched during Book Week. This was the announcement made by BbP Executive Officer, Leanne Resson during one of their latest book launching at the BbP Tatana Library Learning Centre last week Thursday. As of last year, BBP have launched five books under this book series and will now launch seven more including; When I grow up I want to be an Engineer (EMPNG), Pastry Chef (Airways Hotel), Heavy Equipment Operator (Hastings Deering), Pharmacist/Nurse (CPL), Architect (Pacific Palms Property) and Banker (BSP). According to Resson, each book is written by a certain student of BbP and published by BbP based on the profession they aspire to be. “We would like to provide students a sense of privilege of how it is like in a work force and to inspire, motivate and educate them through this book series and the profession they feature in. That is why we created this book series because we want them to see themselves in the story they write.” According to Resson, BbP is aimed at providing children the knowledge to become fluent readers after completing their five to six months program at BbP. This includes learning to read and write and now with this Book Series put in place, hopes to boost their knowledge more. “After this year’s launching, we will now be working on more books to be published for next year’s book launching.” Under their thirteen Book Series, BbP recently launched one of their latest published book titled, ‘When I grow up, I want to be a Paramedic.’ The book was written by 5 year old Flimsep Flim, who was a student of BbP in 2020. He returned to help launch the reader together with the St John Ambulance team, the 2022 BbP student cohort and Tatana Island Community last week Thursday. BbP currently has a total of eleven libraries in Port Moresby alone with a number of them also located nationwide, and has been successfully been in operation for fifteen years.

Kupiano Secondary School in Abau District, Central Province, yesterday opened its' new double story male dormitory consisting of sixty four rooms which was fully funded by the Central Provincial Government. A total of 2.5 million kina was given towards the construction of the dormitory as well as other upcoming projects for the school including a four in one classroom, a girls' dormitory and six staff houses. The construction of the dormitory building took about two months to complete and was finally opened yesterday. Governor of Central Province, Mr. Robert Agarobe, stressed that the purpose of these projects is to create a pathway for better quality education and that starts with the learning environment for the students. “It’s not just about building a dormitory and building a classroom, it’s about structuring a pathway from start to finish and that is why human resource is important and so it starts with you the students. We invest in you for a better future.” “We must all understand that education is a function of the National Government and we the Provincial Government value this, therefore we make sure that our students get the quality education that they need. And with that I have allocated K2.5 million to Kupiano Secondary and another K2.5 million to Kwikila Secondary,” Mr Agarobe said. Agarobe added that this is just the start of what is yet to come for the school with more upcoming projects to be carried out now that funding has already been put towards the infrastructure of the school. “Quality education is not just about teaching in the classroom, it’s about where the students go to sleep, where the students study, where the teacher goes to sleep and where the teacher does his/her preparations for classes,” Agarobe added. According to Agarobe, this is the first phase of what the provincial government will be carrying out in the school which is the infrastructure of classrooms, dormitories and staff houses. The second phase that will be carried out will be the infrastructure of science and computer labs and an administration building. In addition to this, Agarobe said that the provincial government is looking towards building a new curriculum for all schools in Central Province. He said that the provincial plan now is to make sure that all schools are in line with Agriculture, tourism and sports and that is why the plan is to change all secondary schools into Agro Technical schools. “These are the plans that we are aiming to build for the students so that they are well aware and taught the basics at a secondary level before moving onto the tertiary level.” He also stated that for this year, a total of K8.3 million has been put into school fees alone for all schools within the province. The Central governor encouraged the students to perform well to the best of their ability and to make sure that the money invested is put to good use. Apart from the funding given to the school, Agarobe announced that with the newly built hospital at the Kupiano station, a total of fifty beds will be donated as well as a new Ambulance. "This is part of improving the livelihoods for the people of Kupiano starting from the children to the elders," he said.

As a new Artist starting off his career in the Music Industry, Stephen Pouru, 33, has so far released over ten songs since beginning his career last year. Pouru who also goes by the stage name, Rockye Wills, has always had a taste for rock music and loves nothing more than bringing Rock Music back into the country. Pouru comes from a mixed parentage of East New Britain and Manus and says that there is not a lot of rock music in the country, therefore has found his inspiration to bring out more of that in the music industry. “My aim now is to push for more rock music and to give it more air time. There used to be a hit in rock music in the past and with not so much of it now, I feel like it’s time we bring that back.” “I want to create music through rock for people to better understand the lyrics and the depth of the music. I hope it contains the audiences to open their eyes to listen to this music as well.” In an effort towards building his music career, Pouru will be hosting a concert at Jupiter Night Club in Port Moresby, with the theme of the concert being “Dark Metal Rock”. He said that the theme was set out to grasp the attention of the audience and to get more people into rock music. “During the concert, I will be performing my released songs as well as my new upcoming songs.” According to Rockye Wills, the concert will take place for two purposes. The first one is to push for more rock music in the country and the second one is for charity. “I’ve decided that my concert will also be a charity event, aimed to help a particular individual who does a motorcycle food delivery around the city and also gives to the homeless on the streets. I think that this is a great initiative and with that, I am planning to give half of what I’ve made to his service.” “It’s aspiring to know that someone shares what they have with others and to also make something out of a living for themselves.” In addition to this, Pouru encouraged all those who have the same passion as him, whether it’s about music, or art or even starting their own SME business, to pursue their dreams. He stated that being in a digital age, he encouraged those to put themselves out online more and to put technology to good use. “It’s not just about following the trend locally here but looking at how you can promote your service and products offshore as well." "That’s the piece of advice I would like to share with others who want to pursue something in life. I would also encourage those to find their passion.” Pouru is planning on one day hosting a rock music festival in Port Moresby as part of his aim in achieving his dream as well as to aspire others along the way in their walks of life. He also encouraged those out there who are passionate about something to pursue, and if successful, commercialize it so that at the end of the day, they are also able to pay their bills. Pouru so far has three upcoming songs, titled, Meri Papua, Tingting and Meri blo mi. Meri Papua has recently been released as of last week. The other two should hopefully be released before the concert.

Following the recent attack on the school campus by villagers from Ulagunan, the students of Kokopo Business College in East New Britain Province were transferred to the Covid Centre at Takubar for temporary shelter. According to the Deputy Principal, Mr. Memafu Sabadi, there is currently no one on the campus except for police personnel who are monitoring the situation. He stated that a meeting will be held today with the Secretary of DHERST regarding the status of the school and what plans will be carried forward. He said further comments cannot be made at this time until after the meeting has taken place. There has been no latest reports of the attacks on students except for the four students who were brought into the hospital earlier as a result of the attack. Sabadi added that students are traumatized by the incident especially for those who are from other provinces.

Being blessed with an opportunity in life to pursue her education, Daisy Pupdi, a mother of five was one of the many graduates who graduated yesterday at the University of Papua New Guinea's 67th graduation ceremony. Pupdi who comes from Western Highlands Province, shared her proud moment of achieving what she dreamt about accomplishing and that was to major in Human Resource Management. As a working mother juggling both family and work commitments as well as her studies, she finally achieved and received her degree in Bachelor of Business Management and Major in Human Resource Management. Pupdi gave an insight into her educational journey which took her twenty-two years to accomplish her goals as a student and to finally complete her studies. “In 2002, I upgraded my marks at the Open Campus and from there I attended International Training Institute (ITI) in 2005. I got a job at Trukai Industries after completing my studies at ITI and then took up a job at the Institute of National Affairs which I am currently at now.” “Whilst working at INA, the organization assisted me in my education. I successfully completed my studies in 2019 however was not able to graduate the following year due to non-payment of my graduation fees as well as outstanding school fees.” After two years, Pupdi finally graduated with flying colors yesterday at the Sir John Guise Indoor Complex Stadium, witnessed by her husband, father and family members. Pupdi’s father who travelled all the way from Mt Hagen to witness her graduation, expressed how happy he was that she finally saw this day coming. “Mi kam lo Moresby lo lukim hatwok blo Daisy wer mi bin lukim hatwok blong em igo na nau em pinis na nau graduate. Olgeta pikinini graduate em mi kam lo witnessim tasol.” (I came to Moresby to see Daisy’s hard work finally being paid off in which I have seen her working hard and now has finally graduated. I am here to witness my children’s graduation.) “Mi hamamas na tok tenk yu lo God, em givm pawa lo mipla olgeta na mipla e hamamas. Mi tok tenk yu lo u Daisy, usat e hatwok na nau kism bigpla samting. Mi tok tenk yu lo u tu man blo Daisy usat e stap wantem em na helpim em na e pinis nau.” (I am happy and thank God who provides us with the ability and with that we are happy. I thank Daisy who has been working hard and now she has finally achieved something great. I would also like to thank her husband who has been supportive of her and that she is finally done.) Pupdi’s husband who was also there to witness her special day, has always been supportive of her education and her dreams. Johnny Yep, shared how it was a momentous occasion for the family that Daisy finally got to complete her studies. “After the birth of our recent child, I had to help take care of the baby while Daisy carried on with her studies. And now that she has done that, I as the head of the family am very proud and excited that she managed to pull through and getting her degree.” Johnny also shared the challenges of coming from a Highlands background where men normally see women as people who do all the work. He added that men usually take a free ride on things mainly done by the women especially in the homes and in communities. “It’s about time we tell a different story that challenges other men to be able to support their wives and to create a positive impact in the homes and in the community as well. This way we give equal opportunities to women and I am proud that I was able to do so and with that I am happy.” In addition to this, Johnny has challenged other husbands out there to also support their wives. “If your wife wasn’t able to complete her studies and the interest is still burning in them to further their education, then it would be good to give them that support. If they are already in the work force, that is a chance for them to get an increase in their salary which is a good investment." He added that at the end of the day, the outcome of all the hard work done comes back to the home to support the kids and the husband, therefore has encouraged other men to do the same. With that, despite her many challenges, Daisy encouraged those out there who are in the same situation as her not to give up but to continue pursuing their dreams. She thanked all those who supported her in her journey including husband Johnny, her children, her father, her employer, and all those who stood by her.

The University of Papua New Guinea yesterday celebrated the first of its' graduation ceremonies marking the 67th Graduation at the Sir John Guise Indoor Complex Stadium in Port Moresby. Yesterday was officially the first day in which the University began its graduation ceremony, starting off with the School of Business and Public Policy. A total of 397 students graduated with flying colors, witnessed by parents, sponsors and guardians. According to Guest Speaker, Sir Charles Watson Lepani, the school has provided students’ tools to help them navigate in their four years of studies for their next journey which will help them establish their professional careers. He added that this year was also significant because majority of the students who graduated and will graduate in the coming days are females. “After successfully completing your four years of studies, the pathway for you now is to use your knowledge and tools wisely to enhance your well being for your future endeavors.” During the event, Lepani shared with the graduates a brief background regarding their field of study and also provided them an insight about the functions of Public Policy in the country. He stated how Public Policy can have an impact on people’s best interest when it comes to political leadership and public policy making and how much impact it will have on them regarding the trust they have in these leadership. He added that this is the time for the graduates to make a change and to take their success to the next level given what they have learned in the institution. Chancellor of UPNG, Robert Igara, on the other hand commended and congratulated the graduates as well as the hardworking staff of the School of Business and Public Policy for their tireless efforts in making this day possible for the students. “As you end one journey, you will now continue and commit yourself to excellence in opening another chapter in your life. You must continue to learn and improve yourself as growth is unlimited for you.” Igara said that this was a privilege to be awarding the graduates who are now ready to serve the nation and the people. He encouraged the students to continue in pursuing their journey. “An achievement today is an example of intellectuals and leadership portrayed that you and I must see and continue to pursue in the next chapter of life despite the challenges.” “Many challenges will be faced, however, this the only way to overcome it is to face them and that is what will help you to continue to pursue your goals in life.” The Graduates from the School of Business and Public Policy has the largest number for this year with 148 females and 149 males who graduated. The Graduation is scheduled to go on for this week, ending on Friday 29th with the School of Natural and Physical Scinences.

The final year students in Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG), will be hosting a 2022 UPNG Graduation Bash on the 30th of this month. The graduation bash will be a main fundraiser leading up to the MBBS Ball Night which will take place in November. According to MBBS final year student and Fundraising Chairperson, Raymie Aua, the purpose of this fundraiser is to give back to Port Moresby General Hospital as a token of appreciation for facilitating their training by donating much needed medical equipments such as Drip stands, portable ultrasound machines and more. He added that all donations will be presented during the Ball Night. “The MBBS Ball night is an annual event that has taken place for many years and has been a tradition for MBBS students who come to study at UPNG.” “During the night, we the final year medical students not only will donate the much needed equipment but will also swear the Hippocratic Oath, in the presence of our immediate families and distinguished staff from both the University and hospital and is the highlight of the night.” Aua explained that the oath embodies a code of medical ethics that is traditionally taken by those about to begin medical practice and is an oath taken by medical students worldwide prior to commencing work as doctors. In addition to this, Aua said that the 2022 MBBS Ball Night is a significant one because it is the 50th Anniversary of the first ever Ball Night that took place back in November of 1972. He said this year, they hope to host a memorable night encompassing the great achievements that have been achieved by PNG doctors and also celebrating the newest doctors entering into the PNG healthcare workforce. “The Ball Night is hosted and funded by us the students and we have been raising funds since our second year of studies. Apart from our main fundraising which will take place on the 30th of this month, we will also be hosting other small fundraisings until the Ball Night.” Aua has appealed to the general public to support in kind and if interested to do so can contact him on 75958247.

The new Eda City Bus Service initiative by the National Capital District Commission had begun transporting commuters on their scheduled route runs this week in Port Moresby. The Launching of the new Eda City Bus Service took place on Monday at the Apec Haus under the initiative of the NCD Governor, Honorable Mr. Powes Parkop and the National Capital District Commission. The Eda City bus officially started its services Wednesday this week after the major launching on Monday at the back of almost a decade of planning and implementation. Acting City Manager, Mr. Ravu Frank, said that this is one of the biggest decisions and accomplishments ever made in the commissions’ history to venture into public transport. He stated that this was a huge task on their path to commercially venture into the public transport service. “As part of our initial trial, we will learn how to implement and sustain the data we get that will help us plan our vital policy transport. We’re taking the public transport very seriously as a result we will be investing into the visibility of finding viral solutions for the public transport in the city.” “We are committed to venture into the public transport in the city and to roll this service out in the coming months by integrating all the interested PMV operators.” Frank said that with a total of eight buses under Eda City Bus Limited, only five buses will be used to start off with and that they will continue to invest for the addition of more buses. According to Franks, these bus services will be assigned to seven routes by the city's Road Transport Authority (RTA) and will follow a strict scheduled displayed at each of the bus stops. “On completion of the trial, we will be sitting with the RTA to reform the routes with the intention to provide the service that is needed by our city residence.” “We are now in the process of drawing up certain basic expectations in order for us to provide quantitative data to the interested PMV operators to team up with Eda City Bus. We hope to bring in as many PMV operators into our structure.” In addition to this, NCD Governor Mr. Powes Parkop stated that the upbringing of this bus service in the city is part of NCDC’s Urban Development planning which took ten years to plan. He said NCDC continues their aim in creating an efficient, sustainable, reliable and safe public transportation system for the everyone. “We have two phases for what we have planned for our bus service, the first one, will have selected routes to run the service which will be Cash base system. Passengers will be required to pay cash when travelling on the bus.” “From there, we will monitor, assess and move on to phase two which will then be a cashless service. This will see the introduction of a ticketing system for users which will progress onto having smart cards for the payment and use of the service. We plan on introducing the use of mobile phones with specific apps to fully support this venture, bearing in mind that what we do in the city must be of global standard.” Parkop added that the NCDC transport division will be managing the bus service and ensuring that an efficient system for the people is safe and that it is on time. “With the advantage of the bus service, this will save, increase productivity, fuel efficiency, reduce air pollution and reduce traffic congestion. Commuters will also be given less stress in the sense that they don’t have to drive their vehicle to work and end up being stuck in traffic which can be very stressful for most.” Parkop also gave credit to the PMV operators and thanked them for their continuous contribution to the people of Port Moresby. As part of his appreciation towards them, Parkop encouraged the public operators to be partners with the Eda City Bus Service. “Following the introduction of this new bus service, NCDC will set up a business entity called Eda City Bus Limited. Though will be initially owned by NCDC, diverse shares will be distributed to the public operators involved in this service.” He added that the requirement is to maintain and obtain the service and that the bus runs on time as scheduled by RTA with NCDC prepared to subsidize on a monthly basis. Parkop thanked all stakeholders and corporate partners for their support in making this happen and hopes that this service continues to help the NCD residents.