Covid-19 ‘noho dala matamatana’

07 NOVEMBER 2020

MICHAEL DOM

Tanobada egegemada lalonai e varamu gorerena Covid-19 metauna na, ta noho laidiamu mauridia lalodiai vada ta dibadiamu, Bona World Health Organization edia taravatu eiava ede baita mauri toma daladia, e ato lasi, bena Papua New Guinea gavamani ese danu ‘noho dala matamatana’ ealasi ena taunimanima edia.

To settlement ai e nohomu taunimanima dia na ini ededegwamu ina economic crisis lalodia, edia health taravatu dia e ato dio na vada dia gauta.

Lae City na PNG ena trade bona industry gabuna, Lae amo e lasimu dala badana na Okuk Highway bena unuseni ai gabuta na Nine Mile. Bena ini dala badinai e maketimu, hutuma na hahine. Idia na dala esenai mo e helaimu, motuka oromadia danu se lalomu.

May, lagani uanai, edia maketi na e lao goevagoeva. Lockdown ginigunana e hekara, to idia na do unu e maketiva ela bona June 2 ai lockdown taravatu na e atoa siri. Kara ini etomadia e varamu na mauri elaoreana.

Ia danu maketi ta, badina kabedi bona ini gau iboudiai na adorai iboudiai uma amo e lasi laidiamu bena e maketi diamu. To April ela June na taravatu taudia ese e koua, badina tau-kurokuro ta na 10 Mile ai e gorerea.

Guna e maketiva gabuna na e raka tania badina tano taudia bona kokoroku bisinisi tauna ta ida dispute anaianai e abimu.

Umbrella badadia eiava kalaga-kalaga enudiai edia maketi gaudia puse latadiai e atomu

PNG ena population na 8 million, 15% taunimanima dia mo e gaukaramu. A ini taunimanima iboudiai na lasi, unadainai idia bona davadia dia bada ediai black maketi na gau badana.

Local Level Government ese ini taunimanima na e itadia guilagimu eiava se duaidiamu, hegeregeredia, mei-ruma eiava ranu paipu dai danu edia se atomu.

Hanaihanai dala badidia hanuadia na mai maketi dia, egeregerena Nine Mile maketina. Tano lohiadia ida e hereve-hereve gunamu gabeamo edia maketi e karadiamu, tano lohiadia bona local government na se gaukara eboumu.

Tano lohiadia edia laloadai danu unuetomana. Ede baetomu danu lewadia, community health services ediai danu asi gauta.

Nine Mile ai e maketimu hahine dia edia lalo hekwarai tamona na polisi ese basie luludia oho bena edia maketi gaudia bae hadikadia, egeregerena Port Moresby City hahine dia ediai e vara.

Ini gau na dia matamta.

(Gemona Konemamata ese Motu gadoai etorea)

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Michael Dom

Michael Theophilus Dom, born in 1977, is a poet and scientist, graduated from University of Adelaide (PhD in animal

science) and University of Papua New Guinea (BSc in chemistry), and working at the Papua New Guinea National Agriculture Research Institute. Dom is doing science & technology research for developing Papua New Guinea’s smallholder agriculture and livestock sector. In 2012, Dom won the Poetry Award of PNG’s national literary competition, The Crocodile Prize, for his sonnet “I met a pig farmer the other day”. His first collection of poetry, “At another Crossroads”, was published by the UPNG Press in 2013. Michael’s second collection, “The Musing of an Assistant Pig Keeper”, and two chapbooks, “O Arise!” and “Send words as gifts”, were published on the CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform in 2015 and 2016 respectively. His most recent publications are “Dried grass over rough-cut logs” and “26 sonnets”, by PNG independent publishers late Francis Nii and Jordan Dean, respectively.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

This article first appeared on 31.08.2020 in the LCB Diplomatique – The Literary Colloquium Berlin’s alternative news portal International literary correspondents report on political aspects of their everyday lives in texts and images at https://lcb.de/diplomatique/the-covid-19-new-normal/?en.