THE ESSENCE OF CELEBRATING OUR SOVEREIGNTY

Dear fellow citizens of this Sovereign Nation, and expatriate friends who are gathered here this morning. I am greatly honored to have been given this greatest of opportunities by the Senior Executive Management (SEM) of this University to give this address on a very, very special day and date in the life of our nation, and in the spacetime of our lives.

We are gathered here not because there is a bride price payment ceremony, or to witness exchange of wedding vows, or to attend a graduation event, or to participate in some kind of feast. No. We have come to celebrate a highly significant date. It is on this date, 50 years ago, we the people of Papua New Guinea dated with destiny. To a few elects, destiny appeared with significant clarity. To many, destiny appeared with some clarity. And to most, destiny appeared foggy. I was ten years old then, so I was in the third group, that destiny appeared foggy.

But as time progressed, we were led and introduced to strategic pillars, which had been established as national development goals and directive principles. The founding fathers of this sovereign nation looked far into the future, scanned the status quo, and captured and crystallized the foundational goals in the pages of our history. These goals reflect the core aspirations of our founding and forefathers.

Fast-forward fifty years to today, the 16th of September, 2025: In the past couple of months, questions like “Why celebrate?” or “Why must we observe our Independence anniversary?” or, comments like, “Stay home, there’s no reason to celebrate”, and etcetera, have been verbally uttered or captured in various social and print media. We sympathize with those who utter these sentiments because we understand that they arise from observed experiences. We can excuse citizens who react to these and in similar ways because we all are subject to living and working conditions of prevailing environments we occupy.

But consider for a moment the national theme for the Golden Jubilee Independence Anniversary, which states: “Celebrate Our History Inspire Our Future”. When we deeply ponder over this theme, we will immediately realize that there are aspects of our history and quite a number of achievements that are worth observing and celebrating.

We need to reason that our history began in the hearts and minds of our founding fathers, who painstakingly labored and wisely and confidently decided that we ought to date with destiny as a sovereign people. What did our forebearers see? What drove them to sacrifice theirs’ and their family’s time and take risks to struggle for freedom? Their courage to confront the existing systems and mechanisms for the sake of our liberty cannot be arrogantly overlooked or ignored! That brave decision to determine our liberty was indeed the sacred altar upon which our history was etched, and that only history can erase! It is highly necessary for citizens to know and appreciate our history because, as Sir Winston Churchill correctly observed, “A nation that forgets its past has no future”. That sacred altar of sovereignty is worth celebrating!

So, as we take time out today from our busy schedules and retire into deep reflection, there will emerge in our minds a picture, only a few in history will match. That, we got granted our sovereignty without having physically fought for it. There were no bomb blasts, or gutted infrastructure and bullet-holes on buildings, or displaced human habitats, or ‘rivers’ of bloodshed and shredded ecosystems! Our liberty is the outcome of visionary negotiation, deep understanding and inner wisdom, the pearls of human exchanges for blessings of intrinsic value. This is a significant history worth celebrating!

Again, we the sovereign citizens are called to attention and are urged to look up and look around. We behold the splendor of the last frontier, the spectacular mountain terrains, rolling hills, flood plains, and torrential rivers, teeming with rich biodiversity of flora and fauna. We see the natural wealth in the landmass, the river bodies and seas, and the forests, all of which we have free access to, appropriate for our survival and existence. Often, we dub our land, the “Land of gold floating on oil”. We have that freedom to cross regional, provincial, and district boundaries to find comfort, peace and opportunity, and enjoy the blessings of our adopted ecosystems. These are significant blessings we need to celebrate!

History is also about what is originally ours. Our identity, our way of life, our natural wealth of care and share, and who we are as a people – resilient in times of adversity, courageous amidst challenge and controversy, and always in celebrative mood despite scarcity and mistreatment! This is “Papua New Guinea Ways” (our fifth national goal). A people with a carefree lifestyle and the spirit of willingness to adopt change. We are people so diverse yet one! Yes, we must celebrate our unity in diversity and unique identity.

Let us not allow our hearts be troubled and be too negative because of transient spacetime experiences. We know weather changes and conditions are never static!

Over the past 50 years, we have indeed achieved many things. We have developed routine cascading strategic plans to facilitate our progress. We have built infrastructure for education systems. We have built infrastructure for health systems. We have built the road networks. We have and are continuing to develop agriculture, forestry, fisheries and mining industries for economic gain. Children of this nation are now professors, doctors, master and bachelor degree holders; and countless others continue to attain certificates and diplomas in various trades. We have become scientists, doctors, engineers, educationists, pilots, etcetera. And, what about Captain Beverly Pakii, a daughter of this nation, who recently flew from Canada into the Jacksons International Airport with a new airbus (A220-100 series), and a son of this nation, Professor Isi Kevau, a heart specialist in the area of medicine? These and countless others, aren’t these milestones in the making? These are fulfillments of our forefather, Chief Agaundo’s prophecy in the 1960s: “…But tomorrow my son will come…” (note: “son” is generic). In addition, these are outcomes of our founding father, the late Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare’s response of confidence to a statement of challenge in 1975; “How will you be an independent nation state when 99 percent of your population are still illiterate and not fully civilized? You don’t have enough educated population to manage your national affairs and your wealth of natural resources.” In response, the Grand Chief, while looking at the mothers and girls in the crowd said, “I have my engineers, teachers, pilots, captains, and lawyers in these women. They will produce them to run this independent nation state.” YES, we have not completely done or achieved nothing! We have! And these outcomes are worth celebrating!

Yes, it is true that we do have our fair share of downsides. But, which country, or human society in the entire world is completely devoid of these challenges?

The ‘good news’ for us is the fact that we have already identified the causes of our downsides. The causes are outcomes of weaknesses in these three broad categories: Leadership, Management and Mindset! All aspects concerning corruption, economy, ethnic conflicts, law and order breakdown, infrastructural degradation, and etcetera, are the results of the three categories, that is, we lack “quality leadership, good management and positive attitude!

When we deeply ponder over these categories and their associated consequences, we will immediately realize that these are characteristics linked to human beings! Indeed, we, the citizens, people, are the cause of this sovereign nation’s downsides. We need not look anywhere or everywhere but look at ourselves! Because it is not out there, but right here; here in our hearts and minds!

Yes, we have good reasons to celebrate our history. And we have urgent reasons to inspire our future. But, to inspire our future, we must first and genuinely search the contents of our hearts and minds. Because, whatever we inspire the future with, if not genuine, will certainly yield the same outcomes as those we currently witness and observe.

And all that said, always remember, “Your country needs you”! Yes, “Our country needs us!”

Shalom and Blessings, Papua New Guinea!

Professor Macquin Maino