The chairman of PNG
Sustainable Development Program Limited, Sir Mekere Morauta, said the decision
by the Prime Minister to expropriate Ok Tedi Mining Limited without
compensation was "nothing more than stealing an asset belonging the people
of Western Province.
Sir Mekere Morauta |
"Those shares are
owned by the people of Western Province, not PNGSDP. PNGSDP is merely the
custodians of them.
"The Prime Minister
is legally and morally obliged to pay a full and fair price if he is so
determined to get his hands on them."
Sir Mekere said PNGSDP
would do everything in its power to prevent expropriation without compensation,
and was ready to take legal action if Mr O'Neill brought this dangerous
legislation to Parliament.
The company would stand
with the people of Western Province, especially the communities affected by
mine operations and landowners, who have voiced their strong opposition to the
Government's plans.
"PNGSDP has a duty to
protect Western Province people's assets, and will do so with all necessary
legal means," Sir Mekere said.
"Stealing an asset
worth approximately K2 billion to the people of Western Province, plus their
annual K450 million share of the Ok Tedi dividends, is not acceptable legally
or morally. It is unconstitutional as well.
"I also fear that
this is just the first step - I hope he dos not want to get his hands on PNGSDP
itself and the $US1.4 billion in the Long Term Fund."
Sir Mekere said he was shocked
by the Prime Minister's announcement of the expropriation on EMTV last night.
He had spent the past six months trying to negotiate with the PM for a fair
deal on the Western Province's 63.4 percent shareholding held by PNGSDP.
He was aware that many MPs
were concerned by Mr O'Neill's decision, which had been taken in isolation and
against the recommendations of some of his most senior and respected advisors.
Sir Mekere said Mr
O'Neill's criticism of PNGSDP's record on sustainable social and economic development
were nonsense - PNGSDP's had spent approximately K1.18 billion on more than 600
sustainable social and economic development projects since it began operations
in 2002.
"Compare PNGSDP's
commitment to development of Western Province with the achievements of the
national Government," he said. "The national government has done very
little for Western Province with the $US3.8 billion it has received in taxes
and dividends from Ok Tedi.
"Where has that money
gone? It has been wasted, mismanaged and
misappropriated and PNGSDP has been left to do things that are rightfully the
responsibility of the Government. Just imagine what will happen if the
Government gets its hands on the PNGSDP dividends and the $US1.4 billion in the
Long Term Fund.
"That money is to be
used for development for 40 years after the mine closes."
Sir Mekere said PNGSDP had
been an efficient, responsible, transparent and accountable custodian of
Western Province's assets, and compared its performance with the Government's record in business
and financial management.
All the value in the Tolukuma mine was
destroyed when it was put into a State-Owned Enterprise and came under
political influence. Other SOEs were struggling under the same burden - power
supplies and water and sewerage systems across the country are totally
inadequate. The delivery of essential services was bad and getting worse.
"The risks of turning OTML into
an SOE far outweigh the benefits. It would destroy the mine and threaten the
future flow of dividends and consequently the future development of Western
Province.
"Now
is not the time for the Government to be making this decision when reliable
sources estimate that AT LEAST billions of kina has gone missing from
Government coffers in the last few years:
o
Mr
Sam Koim, head of Operation Sweep, estimates that almost half of the annual
development budget between 2009 and 2011 was stolen –this amounts to
approximately K3.5 billion.
o
The
O'Neill Government's own Minister for Works and Implementation, Mr Francis
Awesa, estimates that K9 billion seems to have disappeared from government-held
trust accounts between 2007 and 2011."
Sir Mekere also said expropriating a
privately-owned asset with no compensation sends a very bad message to the
world.
"The international perception will
be that no company's asset or investment is safe, that PNG is not a good place
to invest."
Mekere Morauta KCMG
Chairman
Chairman
No comments:
Post a Comment