PNG Is In Need Of A ‘Cultural Revolution’ Refreshing On & Leveraging Off The Intentions Of Our National Constitution

This is a comment by a Erick Kowa on the social media platform Facebook regarding the COVID-19 pandemic and his concerns as a citizen of our country. A subtle but sad and concerning point indeed to note from Erick’s comments is this scenario of our GoPNG 'listening to foreign advice'.

In Erick’s comment in the snippet above he made mention of the Fifth National Goal and Directive Principles which seeks to embolden us to pursue and promote ‘PNG Ways’ as enshrined in our National Constitution but which we are appearing to have deviated a long way away from. One of the writers of our Constitution, the late Bernard Narokobi, in his discourse on ‘The Melanesian Way’ reinforces that “we are not a people of no consequence, we have a right to be here not as carbon copies of others but as authentic Melanesians [and that] we have a right to question the forces that are at work to change us” and herding us to fit their plans. They say if we don't have a plan, chances are that we will be working to fulfill other peoples' plans. But, yes we do have a plan. It is our Constitution and we need to rediscover and realign again with its intentions. This observed deviation from ‘Our Ways’ now calls for the need of a ‘Cultural Revolution’, to revisit and leverage on our past and refreshing on the underlying meaning and intentions of our plans in our National Constitution as provided by in the Fifth National Goal and Directive Principles.

PNG as a Melanesian country, we are now caught at the cross roads where we are exposed to the modern imported ways which we have to consider along with our Fifth National Goal and Directive Principles. When paths cross, lives change. Unfortunately for most of these changes that we are taking on, we are not giving much forethought about where these changes are going to take us to. Apparently and as Erick puts it in his commentary above, the concept of solving challenges using ‘PNG Ways’ appears to have taken a back stage. When different cultural paths cross, culture changes.

So what is culture? First let us be clear about what culture is. Edward T Hall, an American anthropologist and cross-cultured researcher wrote that, “Deep cultural undercurrents structure life in subtle but highly consistent ways that are not always consciously formulated. Like the invisible jet streams in the skies that determine the course of a storm, these currents shape our lives; yet, their influence is only beginning to be identified.” These other writers, Aycan, Kanungo, Menonca, in one of their publication in 2014 define culture as “A loosely coupled system of values, assumptions, beliefs, norms and behaviours shared among the members of a human group and differentiate it from other groups”.

Also let me explain the word revolution in the context I am using it here. According to google, the word revolution is derived from the Latin word ‘revolutio’ which means ‘a turn around’.

Therefore a ‘Cultural Revolution’, as used in this context here, is to imply that we have deviated way away from our plan as enshrined in our Constitution that we need to review and refresh on its intentions and be embolden in doing the right things for our country according to our plan.

The need of a ‘Cultural Revolution’ refreshing on and leveraging off the intentions of our Constitution to find realignment again and to provide leadership in a contemporary PNG Melanesian society, is needed now more than ever before we are overwhelmed and intimidated into aping the rest of the world.