The Native Iowan

Dear Sir or Madam,

I would like to offer the following as a letter to the Editor.

Subsequent to the reporting carried out in the past week we feel that issuing the message from our press release, in it’s main-body entirety, is best at this time.

Many thanks

The Solomon Islands Chamber of Commerce and Industry offers a New Year’s challenge to all as individuals, as groups and as a Nation…

1. The proverbial harvest is not for the elder generation to treat as their own, to sell, give away or otherwise consume. The elder generation has an obligation to our future generations. The elder generation must nurture and guard that which we know is valuable. The elder generation cannot use everything we see for our own purposes. The elder generation cannot pretend we are the owners of the future. The elder generation is getting old. The elder generation know we must hand over the future to the next generation, sometime… perhaps soon? The challenge here is to be wise custodians and acknowledge that there will be others coming behind us. Our actions are often dictated by shortsighted viewpoints. I challenge all our leaders, all our members of the “leading generation” to rethink your processes and make new plans based on the concept of guardianship rather than ownership.
2. An elected or appointed leader, in private or public settings, has responsibilities that they must be faithful to. We have rules, regulations and laws that must be followed… or such is the rumour… Some would believe that once you’re a leader the rules do not apply. We see this in the community, in our churches, in business and, very clearly we see it in government and in politics. We challenge both private and public sectors to pull their socks up and be honest and fair to your individual and communal responsibilities. Do your work in a professional manner. We are all paid to do a job. To demand or expect “extra”, or to take liberties while doing the job is very wrong. We challenge everyone to be honest and faithful in the work place and to cease unprofessional and at times childish behavior.
3. Parents, Grannies, Aunts and Uncles, Brothers and Sisters… please, act as friendly policemen in your families, your tribes and social networks… We stress “friendly”. We feel that positive reinforcement will work better than violent discipline. Young Citizens… use your peer pressure to ensure you and your friends make the right decisions. It does not make sense to go around damaging property. All in all we share the same environment. We all travel in the same small canoe. Everyone has a role to play. Everyone is important. And it will be cooperation that leads to success. Our families, tribes, communities and Nation all depend on honest cooperation and fair interaction. It is a modern world we live in. And as such we all need to play our role, do our jobs, participate and cooperate. We challenge everyone to be a friendly policeman in your environment. Consider what is best for the community and act accordingly. The big headed, selfish and malicious attitudes that currently exist must stop. Now.
4. We talk of growth. Yet our community grows annually. And we don’t keep-up. Our statutory authorities and State Owned Enterprises know they need to expand to stay alive. But they don’t or they can’t expand at a pace that satisfies demand. SIEA is under capacity as we speak. SIWA struggles to service the community’s needs. We live with extended power and water outages. For the Private Sector this means that the cost-of-doing-business in Solomon Islands is too high. Most services we all pay for are too expensive and far too undependable. The SIG pays more and receives less too. We watch as the SIG regularly pays inflated prices. The Public Sector, like the Private Sector, is paying too much too often and this simply cannot continue. We challenge all business houses, statutory bodies, state owned enterprises, Central and Provincial government offices, the Honiara City Council…We challenge all to be fair and be honest in all dealings. To do more as individuals so we can gain growth and capacity, collectively.
5. Corrupt practices must end. Corruption is killing this Nation. We admit that the Private Sector cannot point the finger of accusation at the Government alone. We cannot profane and proclaim government’s guilt. Not when it is we, the Private Sector, that perpetuates and promotes a corrupt system. We must remember that a corrupt action requires two willing parties. We need to agree to make the systems we have work. No matter how awkward they may be. We can change things by playing our individual roles in a faithful manner. Once we are collecting/ paying our taxes, faithfully, and once we are controlling the Public Treasury, in a responsible manner, we will begin to see honest growth. We challenge all involved to cease the dishonest, self-serving and corrupt practices that we all see; all know about, but do nothing to stop.
6. Should be/ must be spent on education, medical services and infrastructure development. Can we agree that unaccounted for, free money does little more than open the door to graft, corruption and misuse? The topic we discuss here is the proper fiscal management of Public Funds. We challenge the SIG to be wise with and be accountable for all PUBLIC FUNDS.
7. A society that does not manage its waste, does not remove its rubbish, does not clean its communities… well, such a society is not modern at all. We need a forethoughtful and functioning rubbish collection and disposal system, if indeed we are going to attract investment, bring in tourists or sell our beloved country as a destination worth traveling to. Combined with dependable power and water, waste collection and management, is required for us to be a modern society. We need to raise our image. We need to get away from the “locolo” kind attitudes. How do the international or domestic airports appear to a visitor? What do the “main streets” in the Urban Solomons look like to outsiders? Right now we live with our rubbish piled out side our stores, offices and homes. Rats, flies, mosquitoes, and other nasty creatures breed in these perpetual rubbish heaps. We have no organized place to dispose of our waste. Honiara and other Urban Centers are becoming more and more of a communal dump than a modern centre. We challenge everyone to be aware of your responsibilities. To maintain a clean and healthy environment and to demand the same from our communal authorities. This is a joint venture where success is gained through everyone working together to change a situation we all know is unacceptable.
8. I place a challenge before the Media of Solomon Islands. We thank the SI Media for their continued persistence in publishing the news. We know it is not always easy. It is a bright point in Solomon’s history that we have such a strong and active free-press. We do though note that the media has a propensity to forget that they are journalists and not novelists. News is based on the facts of who, what, where and when. We challenge the Media of the Solomons to stick to the facts. To, please, refrain from creative writing and to ensure that what you report is indeed news and not gossip, disguised advertising or propaganda.
9. Lastly: We ask all, We challenge all to be mature. Our Nation is 30 years old. We are a mature nation and, as a mature and democratic population we, the citizenry of the Solomons, have the power to determine what the future will be. We can choose to start, now, after 30 years of trial and error, to make the right decisions. To elect the right leaders. To demand mature behavior and decisions from those we put in power. It is our citizenry, the citizenry that lives on hundreds of islands and speaks over 80 languages; that has the right and responsibility to raise their concerns and demands with one-voice and one-mature-intent. It is time to become a Nation in a true sense. We can and must proudly retain our tribal ties. We can and must proudly teach our children our “home-language”. But we must agree to be Solomon Islanders. We must recognize that our individual strengths, when combined, will create a solid foundation for the future.

The SICCI wishes all a very prosperous and cooperative 2009.