General WPRA Amunggut Tabi stated in one of the briefings to his troops at the Central Headquarters of West Papua Revolutionary Army (WPRA) at Yao Village, Papua New Guinea that there are three poisons that have destroyed our campaigns to free West Papua, namely egoism, gossiping, and fear.
In Lani language of West Papua it is called “An-an”, i.e., only me, nobody else. Gen. Tabi said egocentric leaders would think the following:
- There is nobody else that can do best to free West Papua. Only myself that can free West Papua.
- I do not trust anybody else, they are incapable to free West Papua. I am suspicious of those others being paid and used by Indonesia. I only trust myself, therefore, I am the only best person to free West Papua.
- This is my effort, my work, my own idea, my concept, my property, therefore, I must be the leader, the commander, the chairman, the president, nobody else to take up this position, because I am the one who brought this struggle to this level of achievements.’
Listen, I did not say this is a virus. I did not say this as a disease. But I said, this is a poison. Do you know what poison does?
Here is what Wikipedia, the Free Online Encyclopedia says about poison:
The term “poison” is often used colloquially to describe any harmful substance—particularly corrosive substances, carcinogens, mutagens, teratogens and harmful pollutants, and to exaggerate the dangers of chemicals. …
Similarly, Britanica.com definis poison as follows
Poison, in biochemistry, a substance, natural or synthetic, that causes damage to living tissues and has an injurious or fatal effect on the body, whether it is ingested, inhaled, or absorbed or injected through the skin.
Egocentric is a harmful substance in a collective struggle for collective goal such as Free West Papua Campaign. When everybody within the struggle are strongly attached to the struggle, then it becomes so personal, so egocentric and thus so destructive.
It is a “bio” and “chemistry”, it exists in living being, (bio) and it is chemical.It causes damage to living tissues. Egocentric individuals, egocentric leaders are poisonous. They destroy living tissues in a struggle.
A strong ego is important for self-confidence and strong leadership, but too much egoism is a poison.
Look at the military commanders in West Papua, look at the chair of the leaders within Free West Papua Campaign such as
- The Chair of the Parliament,
- The Chair of the ULMWP Exectutives,
- The Chair of the OPM,
- The President/ Prime Minister of the NRFPB,
- the Chair/ Leaders of the KNPB, and others.
If you are one of those who do not want to follow the constitution of your organisations and want to prolong your leadership term, then you should acknowledge that you are egocentric leader. And that egocentric leader is a poison in your overall struggle.
Not only that, a second sign of egocentric leader is this, “If you want to become the chair, the spokesperson, the commander, the top leader for so long, over the your term, “, then you should brand yourself as an egocentric leader, a poison in the overall movement.
Now,
- What is the next posion?
- What should be done with the poison of egocentric leader?
[…to be continued….]