SOLOMON ISLANDS: Why do we struggle and remain poor?

. HONIARA, Solomon Islands / Solomon Star News / Private View / July 29, 2009 Why are we struggling and become poor? By David Raumali, Honiara THIS is my personal views and rational for a solution for this country. First and foremost, let’s put right first things first, and that is simply as a Christian country, we must allow the all majesty and Sovereign God taking over this country in order to see the real beauty and potential of this country. Solomon Islands is a very rich country, blessed with many resources. We have wealth of mineral and abundant natural resources in terms of good fertile land for agriculture and a climate, which enables us to grow crops all the year round. Rich forest and huge area of sea full of marine resources. We apparently, have the resources of our people HR unskilled and skilled who also have potential of being highly skilled in practical skilled in activities that would highly be adaptable in changing circumstances. Why then are we so poor in such a great land? Why are we unemployed? Why are we so lazy and doing nothing? Why did our young people drink too much kwaso and smoke marijuana that would only make them sick, unhealthy and doesn’t have the energy to work? Why can’t we accept sweat and hard work and work honestly? Why do we only pursuit for academics and book reading that we don’t want our hands to get dirty? We are only looking for city bright lights in Honiara where there is no gold! The Commissioner of Police, Peter Marshall, in a recent media press conference has given a very positive comments and a good challenge. He reiterated that there is no gold in Honiara and the criminal activities were raised at an alarming rate due to influx of youth coming into Honiara City. This needs a whole of government collective effort; to get the industry and entire infrastructure decentralised into the provinces and a strategic look for the unemployed to go back to the provinces. This and again is all about land and employment. Honiara continues to attract a large number of people from the provinces of the country. Most of these are elderly people that seek improved lifestyle, employment and better access to education and health care. Honiara City is a dirty city in the Pacific, because people tried to adopt rural lifestyle in an urban centre and currently a multi ethnic city made of a melting pot of people from across the country’s provinces and other pacific Islands. It is attractive for those seeking excitement and opportunity (city bright lights) as the likes of American dream during the gold rush days. The urban drift and high birth rate has caused Honiara to have a medium age as low as 14, creating a proportionately high percentage of young people – a unique population with high unemployment and high crime rate. It all begun with some 60,000 that was the first Australoid migration into the Pacific Region begun from South East Asia. These first settlers moved into Papua New Guinea and Australia as the first Migrants, they are hunters and gatherers (Aborigines). Later followed by some 10,000 Papuans. This group however moved east to Solomon Islands, New Hebrides (Vanuatu), Fiji and New Caledonia called the Melanesian world today. The third wave of 5,000 Polynesians and Micronesian moved in as Austronesians but already the bigger islands were occupied, so they moved into the smaller Islands and outlying atolls. The whites came in some 200 years ago and used guns to force our people out and took over our land and built sky scrapper buildings, big factories, vast infrastructures and commercial farming developments. We accepted those changes too, but they are hiding something from us and continue to step on us. In 1568 some 441 years ago, Alvero de Mendana Naiyra, a Spanish explorer sailed on the orders of his uncle the governor of Spain in Peru, to look for a continent in the South Sea islands reputed to be filled with gold. The explorers entered the Solomon seas and came to Bogotu Island, after having established friendship and exchanging of gifts with Chief Bugoro. The Spanish expedition under chief navigator De Quiroz sailed on a southerly bearing on his prismatic compass prior to approaching Florida group. He saw the green vegetation and tender green giant native forests where he did not hesitate to name “Boenivesta.” What that name means, ask any Ngela person. Find it out yourself! It was in August 2008, after the 30th Anniversary of Independence of Solomon Islands that the Duke of Gloucester who had previously come for the first independence on July 7, 1978, returned to the Solomon Islands on a state visit. This time he and his wife went to the Parliament of Solomon Islands to give a speech from the throne, sitting close to the speaker of parliament Sir Peter Kenilorea. I quote him: “Solomon islanders, while prices of fuel and food goes up, with your fertile country, you can plant more food, feed your nation and feed the whole world.” What was he talking about? Was he crazy? Were the ears and eyes of all parliamentarians open to hear and see? Refer now to the history of Dr. David Suzuki a Japanese citizen of Cuba under the dictator President Castro. He impacted great changes on the clay soil and it became a great commercial agriculture and stable nation, our student doctors eat five meals per day. Solomon Islanders if they’re lucky they would eat 3 meals per day, otherwise one would only have meal in the morning and you’re out with an empty stomach for the rest of the day until evening dinner. What a sad situation indeed, why has this happened to us, are we lazy? We develop ourselves on subsistence farming, hand to mouth style just enough to eat, take little of our market produce to the market and then we have to start all over again. Agriculture field officers sleep and don’t know what to do. They come to give advice when they see you starting an animal husbandry project like piggery or poultry farm and you have started to look a little healthier. Where were they all these years, where is the money they have for supporting local farmers? What sort of development are they talking about? Development I knew transforms society and results in improvement in lifestyle and wellbeing of the people. We must do something now or we will regret over the next thirty years. The SIG must change its strategy, reshuffle or overhaul its systems with the Ministry of Education, Agriculture and Ministry of youth women and children, on a revolutionary approach. Many millions of dollars have been spent on projects and for rehabilitation but have not worked as expected. A new mind shift and mentality must engrave the hearts and mind of our leaders to impact true change for our youth. What’s wrong with us? What do we search for prosperity for the happy Isles? Do we ever identify the causes of unemployment that have brought us down to our knees? There is nothing complicated and hard to find a solution for this country. If we want this peaceful isles to be restored and have prosperity and become rich nation amongst the first world countries, then it is our responsibility to brainstorm for good ideas and plans that could get us on to a path of prosperity. There may be good policies already in place but they could be another good decorated report for cobwebs and dust. What can we as a nation do to restore the power house in our people again? For too long we sleep without having a plan in place to rescue this country. I am not an economist or a rocket scientist to see the reality of these circumstances now ripe, which have occurred as symptoms of a decayed nation renovated by corruption. We are caught offguard in the ever changing circumstances and the financial crises that hit USA. The road for financial recovery of USA would be tough and take long. We have been dragged into the financial crisis. Our development and budget expenditure are running low. We have a 35% cut on our recurrent budget. Hope we survive the next few years. It would be a hideous blunder to remain ignorant and live in the impression that these things do not affect us. Don’t ever forget about the saying, every dog has its day. Get back to the basics, to your roots to know exactly who you are and where you come from. The Solomon Islands baby is now 31 years old, but is still breastfed, wearing a diaper and very much dependent on aid from first world countries. Some of that aid comes with hidden reasons and fails to bring about any development. It is often taken back by technical advisors and staff who come here from overseas. We need to be sweating and hard working to achieve our goals, never carried away for free handouts. If David Suzuki from Japan can till Cuba's clay soil to make it a potential commercial agriculture nation, what’s so hard about our fertile land where we can plant more food and feed the whole world, like what the Duke of Gloucester uttered on the floor of parliament in 2008. Those words still keep ringing loud in our ears. We need to fight a revolutionary war against the system and we should be okay. Fearless, I will come back again in my next article to drive the nail home, but I would like to see academics of this country take the initiative and leading role to show us the path. The tunnel is dark but we can see some light at a distance. May God bless Solomon Islands stands forevermore. [rc] Copyright © 2007 Solomon Star Newspaper Seniors World Chronicle adds: This is in edited, abridged version of the report.