DID WORKERS IN PNG'S CAPITAL CITY STAY HOME TODAY?

I got out of the car and walked across the Boroko main bus stop in PNG’s capital Port Moresby to speak to several bus drivers about the strike that’s supposed to happen today, it’s the 26^th of October 2018.

But, before I get into that, let me tell you what is happening.

Outspoken opposition MP Bryan Kramer has called for the strike in response to the Government flying in 40 Maseratis for the APEC Leaders’ Summit. 

The PNG Government has defended the acquisition saying a certain standard of vehicle is required for the World’s leaders and that the luxury cars will be sold on to the private sector.

But, there has been a public outcry on Facebook and today those keyboard warriors on FB will walk the talk, all those people who commented will be expected to protest.

Downtown Port Moresby

So, what really happened today?

The short answer is, there is no way of knowing how many people went on strike or protest, but businesses could tell us how many workers turned up for work today.

But, from the amount of traffic observed, a good number of workers may have stayed home.

Children in schools around Port Moresby were also sent home to their parents after the year eight exams in case the buses stopped.

So let us go back to the bus drivers… the first two bus drivers I spoke to said they would continue to operate despite receiving a notice from passengers stating they should stop at 11 a.m.

They told me about their own reasons. They had to pay off the loan used to purchase the bus and they felt the problem was for the politicians’ to sort out. I know… those responses were very ignorant.

The buses and taxis in Port Moresby never stopped operating, so it allowed people to commute in the morning, but, as the day progressed, I was staking out main bus stops from around 9 a.m. till 12 noon and saw that buses waited longer for passengers, very odd for a fortnight Friday, isn't it?

So, what does today tell us about Papua New Guinea as a society?

Again, it's very hard to know if the protest did actually work or not. It's even frustrating that I can't tell you, how I really feel about the way things are. You see, I am a journalist and I have to keep objective with everything... 

So, all I can say is the writing is on the wall, we are either very ignorant about the state of our country, we have too much respect for the delusional idealism of the “big men” in parliament or we’re just too busy trying to make ends meet everyday and can’t take part in protests, I’ll let you  all decide….