Tari leader cleans airfield

Respected Tari businessman and former mayor George Tagobe behind the wheel of his tractor-slasher with his assistant John Aluako busy cutting the grass at Tari airport last Sunday afternoon.

ONE Hela leader is living the exact famous words of one-time US President John F Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”.

Respected Tari businessman and former mayor George Tagobe last week used his own tractor and slasher to mow the 1. 5km-long Tari airfield.

During the height of the 2002 political crisis in Tari and Hela, there was nil government presence in the area.

It was in those tough years that Mr Tagobe showed leadership and stood up for his township and Hela people.

Among the many community activities he supported, Mr Tagobe purchased the tractor and slasher to control the over-grown grass and shrubs engulfing the airport.

Since 2004, it is a common sight at Tari airport to see Mr Tagobe with his Australian RM Williams cowboy hat, driving his blue tractor as he fells the tall grass.

Children and the public alike would stand astounded for many hours around the perimeter fences of the airport at the nearby Tari hospital, Homa sports fields and town area to marvel at Mr Tagobe who meticulously manoeuvres his tractor among the tall grass.

In the last few years when Hela got its provincial status, Mr Tagobe went into recess and abandoned the airport.

His frustration was that he has over the years used his machine and fuel from his own deport to maintain the airport but the powers that be like the National Airports Corporation (NAC) the provincial and national governments seemed to have turned a blind eye on the status and maintenance of Tari airport which eventually became the vital launch-pad facility for the multi-billion kina PNG LNG project.

Last Sunday, Mr Tagobe decided to start- up the engine of his tractor and cut the grass again.

When pressed why he did so, Mr Tagobe said he saw the people cleaning the Tari town in preparation for Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s visit to Hela and therefore decided to step in and assist the preparation by using his tractor and fuel to give the Tari airport a deserving sight before the Prime Minister’s visit.