Wau Waria’s Waria LLG President, Hon Maita Tokuba has earned praise from the Wau Waria MP, Hon Marsh Narewec, after spending K12, 000 from his own pocket to connect the remote Waria LLG office at Garaina Station to a high speed Starlink-powered network.
Installed by ‘Digicast’ 4 days ago (last Thursday), the service has brought faster internet connectivity to an area where reliable communication has long been a challenge, giving staff at Garaina a stronger reason and opportunity to remain at their work station and serve the people.
A fitting touch is that the Digicast technicians Hon Tokuba engaged, happen to be from Garaina, hence out of personal excitement to see their very own LLG get connected, the technicians chose not to charge any fees for their technical labour in full support of Hon Tokuba’s initiative.
Hon Maita Tokuba (Second from left front row in blue and white striped shirt) with the Starlink equipment, posing with some of his LLG officers and a Digicast technician (Picture supplied)
Learning about this, the first-time visionary Wau Waria MP, Hon Narewec praised the President’s initiative, saying it complements his DDA’s wider vision to bring public servants, government services and economic activities back to the once economically-lively Garaina Station.
“I am truly proud of Hon Maita. His desire, similar to mine is to see public servants return to Garaina Station, remain and work from there. He has practically shown that commitment by spending his own funds to get Starlink connected, and I acknowledge and truly commend his commitment.”
“The DDA’s focus on work on the Northern-Highway road is progressively connecting Garaina to Wau and Lae, with the DDA’s attention also turning to the rehabilitation of the existing government buildings at Garaina Station,” Hon Narewec said.
He went on to state, that work has started with the old Guru Missionary House, which will accommodate external teams carrying out building maintenance and supporting the rehabilitation of the historic Garaina Tea Plantation. The Garaina Sub-Health Centre, Police Barracks and other government buildings will follow soon after.
Therefore for Garaina, the Starlink connection is more than faster internet, it is another sign of life returning to a once-economically important government station. Reliable communication opens doors to education, business, government services, information and stronger connections with families and partners outside Waria.
President Tokuba and his Waria LLG officers testing the Starlink-powered 4g network at Garaina station (Picture supplied )
“While the DDA continues working to improve road access, rehabilitate government buildings and revive the Garaina Tea Plantation, this Starlink connection, made possible through the initiative of Hon Maita Tokuba, will now compliment and significantly improve and strengthen communication in Garaina,” Hon Narewec said.
After 50 years of sitting idle, Garaina is slowly but surely reconnecting, rebuilding and coming back to life.
“Once again congratulations to Hon Maita Tokuba for taking this bold and significantly positive step forward for his Waria LLG people and for the district as a whole,” Hon Narewec said.