PAPUA New Guinea will face a crisis if schools do not teach good values, Waigani Christian College (WCC) principal Ambakure Kaupa says.
Mr Kaupa said this on Wednesday to launch the “Senisim PNG Program”, an initiative of the PNG Tribal Foundation in partnership with the Education Department.
A total of 458 grade 11 students are participating in the program’s session on good values and servant leadership of the Maxwell Leadership Foundation, which started yesterday at the WCC.
“There is a moral decay in most students in schools because authorities fail to take ownership to teach good values to our students, we are now engaging with Tribal Foundation to teach the program,” Mr Kaupa said.
“We see a lot of disrespect amongst student, destroying public properties on graffities, swearing each other, chewing, smoking which we cannot continue to allow this but find better ways to change their mindset and attitude in our school.
“The program will allow them to respect each other, understand the social and economy issues of the country and how they can take proactive approaches with the current crisis we have now in the country.”
Allan Jim, Education Department’s first secretary of Guidance and Counselling Division for Highlands and New Guinea Islands, witnessed the launching of the program with SenisIm PNG facilitators. He challenged the students to be good citizens of tomorrow.
“I am seeing students of this school wearing uniform chewing betel nut and smoking away in bus stops and market places and it makes to think and worry because as the board member of school committee what can we do to change these students’ attitude and behaviour and having this Tribal Foundation is timely for us,” Mr Jim said.
Deputy principal (curriculum) Val Mayo expressed strong support for the initiative, highlighting its alignment with the school’s mission to develop responsible and morally grounded students.
“This is more than just an extracurricular activity and it is about shaping our future leaders with strong ethical foundations,” he said.
Senism PNG national coordinator Phillie Marai said: “We can change this country ourselves and not foreigners coming to tell us to change. We have to be change makers ourselves today.”
WCC is the third school to partner with PNG Tribal Foundation to conduct the program. The previous two schools were Jubilee Catholic Secondary Schooland Marianville Catholic High School.