A UNITED Church reverend and Hungarian counterpart have been traversing throughout the country on a bike and foot with a mission to educate school children and communities that a shift in their mentality could make them useful in their respective communities. Reverend Laio Poka from Vabukori village started his cycling journey in Port Moresby and cycled to Kupiano, Gadaisu, then onto Alotau, Popondetta Lae, Madang, Wewak and Vanimo. In Vanimo, he bumped into Hungarian hiker Les Czifra, who was crossing over from Indonesia into PNG, and he was inspired by Pastor Laio and joined up with the pastor in Kimbe.
“We united in Kimbe, and ever since I started following his mission from Kimbe where we cycled, walked and hiked our way over four days from Bialla then onto Rabaul and arrived in Buka,” said the tourist Czifra. “The main message that I am conveying to school children and youths and that many young people is that their is great potential in them. “Like a useless tyre, we can bring out a beautiful flowerpot, a nice swing chair, a table or any other products from a tyre,” said Pastor Poka.
“God has put a lot of potential inside each one of us and it is my mission to change people’s mindset that they have an in-built potential and can become useful in the societies.” Pastor Poka, an ex-prisoner, got saved while in prison and learnt the skills of using old useless tyres and turning them into something useful. He started his tyre mission to use as an example when trying to change the younger generation’s mentality into being useful people in their respective societies.
Arriving in Buka, the Bougainville Police Service heard about their mission and approached the pastor and his companion to be engaged by the Police Service to educate and rehabilitate youths in various communities in the region. Pastor Poka will also visit the Bekut jail at Buka to speak to inmates as part of their rehabilitation program..
