This is a time for learning as well as action.
Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey made this statement following his meeting on Wednesday (May 20) with former Prime Minister, Sir Michael Somare.
“I was honoured to have a really good discussion with our founding father and Grand Chief Michael Somare, PNG’s longest serving Prime Minister. We had a long meeting talking about the challenges of good governance, including through demanding times,” stated Ling-Stuckey.
“The COVID-19 Crisis is clearly one of the most demanding times in our history. I want to learn lessons from our past so we can best protect our future.
“The Marape-Steven government is taking actions – as set out in our K5.7 billion Economic Stimulus Package. The largest economic action plan in our history. This includes well-targeted expenditure actions of K280 million to support our health and security response, as well as K320 million to support our economic support response.
“We also need to learn from our past. We also need to record our past for our future generations. As I listened to Grand Chief’s advice on dealing with crises, I thought it was vital that we record the extraordinary experiences of our former leaders.
“We must learn. We must learn from what we have achieved. I will work with the Grand Chief in supporting actions to record our history so our children and our grandchildren and great grandchildren can learn our proud history. This is part of the Take Back PNG agenda. This should be through the written word as well as newer technologies such as high quality video interviews.
“As we approach the 50 year celebration of our Independence in 2025, I am strongly supportive of a project to record our Grand Chief’s memoirs. For the sake of future generations, we should remember and celebrate our great leaders and learn as we forge PNG’s story for the centuries ahead.”