Enga Province

Wabag Town bus stop. Bus crew calling on passengers for taking board.

Action governor in 2002 after motor bike ride.

Enga governor Sir. Ipatas in Sepik traditional attire.

There is no longer a society in Enga or PNG still living uncivilized, and the photograph here somewhat seem a society in the past. People nowadays have changed the way they live, having entertained the western influences engulfing all parts of the country: every societal protocol, the landscapes, seashores have all been transformed to something different. Consequently, it is very shocking to hear from most people that they would find it really hard to practice culturalisms. However, it is not a thing of the past as you might imagine, these things were withnessed by most of the middle-ages living in the province now..That is how, Enga is changing so is PNG... ..

The highest freshwater lake in Papua New Guinea, a body of water on the ceiling of this beautiful country. Known as Lake Surunki, it is the source of one of Enga’s great rivers, the Lai, which flows on to form the mighty Sepik.

Attaired in Engan fashion

Kompiam Road Under construction 2013..

Young Engan men in full traditional atire @ a cultural show..

women selling betel nut at Wabag town- Pawas Buai Market...

“Good” corruption in Enga: is corruption a culturally relative phenomenon?
At a recent community forum in the Southern Highlands of PNG a participant said, “We don’t need any more bad corruption in the Southern Highlands. We need good corruption like they have in Enga.” This person went on to describe the public services delivered personally by some high profile politicians in Enga as “good” corruption, as opposed to the “bad” corruption in the Southern Highlands, where services are hardly seen to be delivered at all (at least in the view of this forum participant).

This statement highlights the challenges involved in applying the modern concept of corruption to societies with social structures dramatically different to that of developed societies, such as OECD countries.

The definition of corruption used by Transparency International is, “The abuse of entrusted power for private gain.” This definition is approximately shared by all international organizations such as World Bank and the UN, as well as bilateral donors such as AusAID. The common feature of the definition used by all is the separation of public and private realms. But as one delves into the application of this definition in a practical sense in societies such as PNG, an uncomfortable question arises: what about societies where the accepted differentiation between what is public and what is private is hotly contested?

Typical Engan man in full traditional attire...

Member for Kompiam Ambum John Pundari speaking to his people in an occasion in 2012..