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Saturday, March 03, 2012

Kairuku-Hiri leaders question MP’s loyalty

By JEFFREY ELAPA

PEOPLE and councillors of the Kairuku-Hiri electorate want the Prime Minister’s People Congress Party (PNC) to endorse their candidate of choice and not Paru Aihi, The National reports.
 Aihi, who won the 2007 election under the PNG Party banner in 2007 after defeating Sir Moi Avei, defected to the National Alliance party early last year where he was given the ministry of Higher Education Science and Technology.
However, the people and councillors are furious that Prime Minister and leader of PNC Peter O’Neill and its executives had accepted Aihi as a member.
They are planning to petition party executives and parliamentary members to endorse the man of their choice today during the PNC national convention in Goroka.
Out of 77 councillors and ward members, 50 of them have signed and submitted a letter to the prime minister to endorse the man “who will represent them come the next five years”.
They said the leader and his executives were aware of the letters submitted to them.
LLG councillors of Hiri, Mekeo, Koiari, Tubusereia and others from Bereina and Yule Island said since the PNC was a party started by the people of Port Moresby and Central, led by the late Sir William Bill Skate, they wanted a say on who the party should endorse as their candidates.
They questioned Ai­hi’s endorsement, noting that he had refused in the past two elections to run as a PNC candidate.
The councillors in a letter to the prime minister had endorsed a man (named) and not any other person to represent them  in the next five years.
They also called on Aihi to explain his mandate and loyalty, whether it was in his business, people or party.
The PNC Party yesterday said they remained open to all intending candidates and they had advised that they would not respond to this to the media but deal with it within the party.
O’Neill has admitted receiving the proposal and letter from the people hesitate to comment

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