Tides of Duty

About the Book

Tides of Duty is a powerful account of leadership, service, and nation-building in Papua New Guinea. From his early childhood growing up in military barracks at Taurama and Murray, to his formative years at Hohola Demonstration School and Gordons High School, Peter Ilau's journey reflects the shaping of discipline, identity, and purpose. His enlistment at the Goldie River Training Depot and progression through officer training at Igam Barracks marked the beginning of a distinguished military career. Rising through the ranks of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force, Ilau served as a maritime officer during a defining period in the nation's post-independence history. His career spans operational deployments, leadership challenges, and institutional transformation within the PNGDF. In 2002, he made history as the first maritime officer appointed Chief of Defence Force — an achievement that symbolised both personal excellence and the evolution of the Defence Force itself. More than a memoir, Tides of Duty offers a rare insider account of military leadership, command responsibility, and the strategic realities of the Pacific region.

About the Author

Lahui Ako is an author. In a previous life, he was the director general of the PNG APEC Secretariat, Department of Prime Minister and NEC (PMNEC), from November 2012 until his resignation from the PNG public service in October 2020 to pursue a career in the private sector. He was PNG’s APEC senior official during its APEC host year in 2018 and held that appointment until his resignation. A career foreign service officer, he joined the PNG Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in 1993. He later served as first secretary at the PNG Embassy in Beijing, People’s Republic of China, from 2003 to 2007, and has held various middle-level management positions in DFAT until August 2012, when he was appointed by Cabinet to head and establish the PNG APEC Secretariat within the PMNEC in preparation for PNG’s hosting of APEC in 2018. Lahui holds a master of strategic management (2011) from the University of PNG. He currently holds the following valid international project management certifications: Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM, 2021), Project Management Development Professional (PMD Pro, 2023), and PMD Pro (Practitioner, 2024). He is also a certified trainer and assessor with NC3 accreditations. Lahui has authored the following books: • God Knows Best: APEC PNG 2018: My Way (2023) • Towards a PNG Foreign Policy White Paper: A Project Management Approach (2022) • Nameless Warriors: The Ben Moide Story (WWII history, 2012) • A Logohu in China (pictorial, 2007) • Upstream Through Endless Sands of Blessings (biography, 2005) He has contributed to the Australian Historical Studies Journal (vol. 55, issue 2, May 2024) For his contributions to WWII and military history in PNG, he was bestowed with an honorary membership of the PIB, NGIB, PIR Association (WWII veterans’ association) of Australia in August 2018, and in 2024, appointed as the PNG representative of the association. Lahui is an ekalesia of the Poreporena United Church, Papua New Guinea. Lahui currently volunteers for his family-run social enterprise, Joscane Pathfinders Inc, and its consultative firm, Laglobal Consulting Services Ltd, and during the final editing of this book (2026), he was the APEC adviser to the Office of the Chief Secretary to Government and the interim PNG PECC representative.