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The Perils of the false trail of Bhutan in your quest to be a "True Papua New Guinean"

June 23 2010 at 8:58 PM
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Response to Re: ONLY VILLAGE CONMEN, WAIGANI THIEVES & FOREIGN INVESTORS WANT THESE MINES, LNG PROJECT

my dear "true Papua New Guinean"

Its funny you pontificate about Bhutan holding it up as an example that PNG should emulate and then say "Read something that challenges your brain instead of only the things that reinforce your pre-conceived notions. You're thinking inside the box, just repeating the same story that those who come to help PNG (and actually exploit us) are always saying. In so doing, you sound like the perfect coconut! "


50% of Bhutan's national budget is made up of foreign aid. It has a huge trade deficit / foreign account deficit, its public sector (government!) is dominated by Indians (non-Bhutanese!), it has virtually no industry (no manufacturing, etc), very little in exports other than some agriculture 95% of which go to India. It has no universities (!!!) and only a minority of students actually progress to highschool (!!!!). Its trade deficit amounts to US$70-80M (imports exceed exports) which is almost equal to how much it receives in aid. This means that the country would be in dire straits without any aid.

Bhutan is a basket case!!! It is not something that PNG should follow. We should aim for as many Papua New Guineans to go university as possible or at the very least highschool. Our current account stands at a huge surplus because of.....wait for it....the mining industry and our massive exports of gold and oil. This is the same industry that has payed for a large part of your education and the services you enjoy (since the resources sector accounts for 60% of the government's tax revenue).

If you really practice what you preached, you would have long ago wiped all the knowledge that you gained in highschool or university and became a semi educated farmer with no ambitions for your children to better your educational level (or have a better life!)....then you would really be like someone from Bhutan. You would not have access to the internet (so you are a hypocrite by even reading this posting on the internet).

The real true Papua New Guineans are those that want the best for their fellow Papua New Guineans. You need to learn that in your quest. Don't try to push us back 50 years...today may not be perfect, but our fathers and our generation have worked bloody hard to get us here...and to give you access to the ability to get the education you enjoy today.

 
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