MONEY IS NOT THE ROOT OF EVIL; THE LOVE OF IT IS……..??

By Richard Mandui 

Vendors in a busy market in Port Moresby 

Many of us treat money as something that has got a life of its own; something that is living and breathing. That is the illusion most of us have that distorts our handling of money. However, we should be treating money as a material possession. Many misinterprets and accept the distorted perception and on money in contrary to the actual teaching in the bible regarding money;

Most people say “Money is the root of evil”. The bible says  “for the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil…….” (1 Timothy 6:10. Holy Bible – New International Version.)

The middle class and the poor people tend to lean more towards the illusion that money has a life of its own and have reverence for it. Thus we work for money. The rich on the other hand; tend to think otherwise; they treat it as a material possession and make money work for them.

In PNG we love money but we are too lazy to honestly work for it. The people back in the districts have come up with their own way of making money through the “handout mentality”. The public servants serving in government have come up with the other method called the “10% cut” for getting the job done. Our politicians have also come up with theirs and it is called “finder’s fee,” for all those overseas loans they get for developing PNG with which; they get their percentage from and the state repay.

Money makes the world go around as the saying goes. In Port Moresby city, that saying has a familiar ring to it and can be seen practiced in broad daylight day in day out. Bus drivers, taxi drivers, betel nut vendors and service providers have their own way of making money.

For instance bus fare in NCD is seventy (70) toea a ride anywhere within city limits. Because of the love of money; bus drivers and crew without the authority of the Land Transport Board have come up with their own routes and fares. Today there is a direct freeway route on Bus 4; from Gordons (instead of travelling through its allocated route from Gordons – Courts – SNS Central Waigani – Boroko – Badili, Koki – Downtown – Kone – Hanubada and return)  through to downtown via Konedobu for a K1.00 fee. In the afternoon that fee is raised to K2.00 on the return journey. In addition after 2pm in the afternoon; the Bus 16 route from Gordons to Bomana (instead of travelling its allocated route which is from Bomana – Gordons – Courts – SNS Central Waigani – Four Mile – Tabari – Taurama Foodland – Three Mile – Manu Autoport and return)  see fare change from seventy (70) toea to K2.00.

From my research, I have found out that bus owners (this also applies to taxi owners) have a certain daily income quota they have set for the driver and the crew to make in a day (For taxi owners this applies to the driver only). For bus owners it may be K300.00 – K350.00 per day and for taxi owners it may be less. The task of fulfilling that outcome is left to the driver and crew of the bus to meet. Any monies collected after the required daily income is an incentive for the driver and crew.

Therefore, for buses to follow their allocated routes, the driver and the crew may not make their bonuses; so they devise their own route (mainly shortcuts) whereas they can meet their daily target and claim the bonuses. Most cases, those routes are illegal and fees charged excessive but the travelling publics don’t seem to care and the authorities turn a blind eye to it. Hence, the love of money controls the show.

In a day a PMV Bus 4 plying the illegal Gordons to Downtown direct service may raise the following monies;

Morning direct service:                                 4 x runs x 25 passengers x K1.00                                =             K100.00

Afternoon direct service:                               4 x runs x 25 passengers X K2.00                                =             K200.00

                                                                TOTAL:                =             K300.00

From this simple calculation, one can see why this route is profitable to the bus driver and crew. Hence they don’t care about the consequences of their actions. All they can see is the amount of kina they will have in their pockets after they have met the owner’s target. The owner also knowingly turns a blind eye to the illegal activity of his bus operator. He is always happy so long as he meets his daily targeted cash flow. Remember this calculation is only for a day. Try calculating this simple equation (by increasing number of runs) for seven days and you shall grasp the power of the love of money at work.

Apart from that classic example, there are lots more of such activities happening all around us today. Public Servants nowadays are on fortnightly salaries as per their job descriptions; paid for by your taxes to do their required jobs. However, if that job requires dealing with money then it is very common practice now that, you have to grease their hand first before your claim will be processed.  

Politicians on the other hand take overseas trips stating that they are going abroad to secure funding for development and impact projects for the people of this country. On their return they hold grand press conferences and make big statements boasting of how much millions and billions of dollars they have brought in. Fine for the grand show but the hidden agenda is the fact that, they still make money from a percentage of what they have secured from what is known as a “finder’s fee”. Supposing the “finder’s fee” is 20 percent. If a politician secures a loan of K6 billion kina then he is entitled for K1.2 billion.

The love of money syndrome does not stop only in businesses or government; sadly it has spread its roots down to the family unit in households throughout the country. Gone are the days when children will do things for free. Today a child will ask what he/she will receive in return for doing a favor first; before the deed is done.

About the author

Richard Mandui is a business reporter and freelance feature write with Pacific Business Review. Richard covers major breaking news attractive industries and do features/commentaries. 

Disclaimer: All view expressed here do not represent The Intelligence Magazine. It is the personal view of the author based on his findings.