Unknown future awaits

As Papua New Guinea’s schools put out more leavers, spaces at higher institutions will run short, prompting the need for more tertiary and skills training institutions. 

This was the message highlighted to Kilakila Secondary School Grade 12 students who graduated last Friday. 

While some will continue their education in the formal system, others will be left to make it out on their own through the vocational and other life-skills training institutions or through extended studies programmes. – Nationalpic by EKAR KEAPU

Prime Minister backs medium-term plan

THE prime minister said next year’s budget, to be brought down in parliament next week, will represent the start of the medium-term development plan for the first five years to 2015, The National reports.
He said under the MTDP, the government was targeting a development expenditure of K36 billion over five years to create an additional 315,200 jobs throughout Papua New Guinea by 2015.
Sir Michael said the MTDP was also the first five-year stage in the government’s broader strategy of the 20-year development strategy plan (PNGDSP) and the realisation of the Vision 2050 programmes, which would provide the overall direction of PNG’s development initiatives for the next 40 years.
“These programmes collectively form the building blocks for economic development and prosperity of our nation for future generations,” Sir Michael said in a statement yesterday.
The plan would aim to achieve an average economic growth of 8.5% a year which would result in a healthy rise in the average GDP per person from K3, 430 this year to K4, 638 by 2015, he added.
“The MTDP now becomes the cornerstone for all national, sectoral, provincial, district and local government plans.
“It provides cohesion, direction, rigour, deliverable targets, measurability and accountability for all sector development activities.
“Above all, it is a programme that enables the whole nation to pull together in a team effort to realise Vision 2050.”
The most significant aspects of the MTDP included:

Ø       The upgrading of 16 national priority roads, construction of 16 “missing link” roads and construction of four additional economic corridor national roads;

Ø       The construction of 315 new aid posts around the country in line with targets set for 2030 under the DSP. The plan required the Department of Health to hire 50 additional doctors and 787 nurses by 2015;

Ø       In the education sector, 1,678 new primary and secondary schools would be built across the nation in every province with more than 9,800 teachers to be recruited in the next five years;
. In higher education, about 21,500 university places would be created, 6,800 technical and business college places, 8,000 teacher places, 5,000 nursing places, 3,700 vocational training institution places and improved access to internet and communication technologies; and

Ø       K1.1 billion will be spent to improve the law and order situation.
Job creation within the MTDP was expected to be dramatic with 87,300 jobs created by the end of next year and 315,200 more Papua New Guineans to have jobs by 2015.
About 239,000 of these government and private sector jobs would be in the “urban formal” sector with most of the balance representing additional rural employment at the “informal level” in a village environment, Sir Michael said.

Baki faces sacking

POLICE Commissioner Gari Baki faces being sacked before his term expires next January, The National reports.
Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare issued instructions to replace Baki soon after he removed Police Minister Sani Rambi from the portfolio to Labour and Industrial Relations.
According to documents made available to The National, Baki faces the sack for “misleading” cabinet in requesting K10 million for police operations in the PNG LNG project areas.
The documents showed that Sir Michael had written a letter to Public Service Minister Peter O’Neill to begin the process of suspending and removing Baki, and appointing deputy police commissioner Tony Wagambie as acting commissioner and Supt Fred Yakasa as deputy commissioner.
The reasons cited in the letter accused Baki of allowing the police force to run down and “there is a general breakdown in law and order”.
A separate letter, purportedly from the prime minister to Baki last Thursday, asked the commissioner to respond to the allegation that he had misled the prime minister and other senior government ministers into thinking that K10 million was urgently needed to ensure continued police presence in Kopi and the LNG corridor and that he had already withdrawn officers from the area.
Sir Michael stated that the decision to withdraw officers was in direct conflict with the advice he had provided and called into question whether Baki had adequately performed his duties as commissioner.
He stated that this was against advice provided by Peter Graham of ExxonMobil that the developer was providing all necessary support to police in the area which included transport, communication, fuel and additional allowances for police.
ExxonMobil stated that the government only needed to provide base salary, uniforms, weapons and ammunition.
“At this stage, it appears as though you have deliberately misled the government and I believe that these serious allegations amount to misconduct and wish to advise you that you have three days to respond to the allegations.
“Failing this, I will institute necessary disciplinary action in accordance with your contract,” Sir Michael stated.
It was unclear if Baki had responded to the letter from the prime minister.
But, police sources said Baki was well within his rights to ask the government for urgent funding because the work of police was a state responsibility, to be funded by the government, and the constabulary cannot be getting paid by contractors and be seen as private security guards.
“If the government is serious about the security of the PNG LNG project, and wants the constabulary involved in security operations, it must find the money to fund it.
“Receiving K2 million funding from ExxonMobil every month will make police look like the company’s security guards,” the source said.

 

Defence changes in the next decade

BY REGINALD RENAGI

A BETTER BALANCED approach to decision-making within the Papua New Guinea defence organisation requires processes to encourage consultation and reconcile diverse views in a timely manner leading to clearer decisions and better accountability.

Defence has had too many committees with the same senior-ranked members.

Over the past two years, these committees have been reduced to less than six.

But they still need to improve their assertiveness to manage many outstanding issues built up over previous years.

The future PNGDF must give high priority to sovereign defence tasks.

More of the Ministry’s attention and resources will need to focus on urgent internal security challenges and national development initiatives like civic action tasks.

To perform its future roles effectively, defence operations will have to be more responsive.

This means developing highly-mobile special operations forces that can react more quickly to internal security contingencies.

More attention must focus on readiness and sustainability than on buying expensive equipment.

The future PNGDF must be a better organised and well-equipped force.

It should be innovative and flexible and share support functions with the civil police force.

The Defence secretary and Force commander must be responsible for implementation of a force restructure and the subsequent reorganisation described in Part I of this series (see post below).

A small force restructure implementation team should be established this year.

Ongoing evaluation must be done to monitor achievement of resource efficiencies.

The management of change will be undertaken by line managers so that process and outcomes are owned by the personnel and organisations involved in the activity.

Responsibility for creating new sub-organisations should belong to the programme manager who will be responsible for the arrangements proposed by the review.

The PNGDF is currently not structured to adequately fulfill its present roles, particularly in internal security, while at the same time engaged in nation building tasks.

A previous Cabinet decision to raise the manpower ceiling to 5,200 by 1995 did not materialise, demonstrating the then government’s lack of political will.

The present security situation demands that the government must rescind the decision in late 2001 to cut the PNGDF’s strength by over 60%.

 It must commit to boosting the military’s size to over 10,000 and to increase the size of the police force.

The restructuring must be conducted in phases to permit the initial reorganisation to take place at minimum cost.

The government needs to make a continuous and stable investment for a decade to properly reshape the department and the PNGDF.

There is no other option but to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of defence within the next decade.

The writer is confident that an appropriate level of defence funding for national security can be achieved.

Defence needs appropriate financial resources to execute a restructuring plan.

A defence re-organisation is required in Papua New Guinea

BY REGINALD RENAGI

OVER THE NEXT few years to the end of the decade, Papua New Guinea’s defence organisation needs to undergo some far-reaching changes.

As part of the government’s long-term Defence Reform Plan, the Ministry of Defence must continually improve its functions by systematically implementing rationalisation at the higher defence level.

In recent times, a separate training branch has been established within the Murray Barracks defence headquarters in Port Moresby.

The Ministry will need to co-locate public affairs, legal services and an integrated logistics component.

An urgent need also exists for a defence reserve force structure to include lower level operations headquarters under existing command arrangements.

The strategic and operational headquarters must also be refined and reshaped.

Unlike in previous years, the new Defence Force headquarters must work well with the Defence Department.

After this, operational units must be further reviewed in some depth to streamline their structures and operational roles.

These proposals will involve changes to the PNGDF’s current organisation, preferably over the next 12 months to two years to make it more effective and efficient.

Once provisional arrangements have been trialled and established, the Ministry should start boosting the overall strength of the Force to meet PNG’s future security requirements.

In addition, the Ministry must be more creative in the use of civil contractors to efficiently maintain its capital assets such as ships, aircraft, heavy vehicles and associated equipment.

In the next two years, before the next national general elections, the PNG government through the Ministry must fully commit to initiate changes designed to deliver defence cost savings while substantially increasing the country’s total military effectiveness.

The Ministry’s continuing challenge is to keep the Defence organisation focused on key outcomes in ways that conform to broader government practices and requirements.

There also needs to be greater centralisation of policy and planning functions, including capability development arrangements.

The Defence secretary and the Force commander must be unambiguously in charge of the Defence organisation.

There needs to be a clear definition of functions solely the responsibility of the secretary, solely those of the Commander, and those which are shared.

A Chiefs of Staff Committee and a senior Defence Management Committee should also be created to provide high level policy and management guidance to the organisation.

The ways in which the military branch and civilian division heads exercise their responsibilities must be considerably changed.

In short, defence executives from both civil and military must know where their organisation wants to go, and what resources it has to get there.

Wantoat farmers need access to Lae fish markets

By SUZIE GEBO of NARI

Despite the mountainous geography of the area, smallholder farmers in the Wantoat local level government of Markham in Morobe have successfully constructed fish ponds and are producing fish of exceptional sizes.

A fish pond at Wantoat

 The environment is ideal for inland pond fish farming.

Currently there are about 30 established fish farmers and the interest in fish farming is growing and more people are starting to engage in this activity.

The pond sizes range from as small as 5m x 5m to as large as 11m x 45m and are stocked with carp and GIFT (genetically improved farmed tilapia) that number from a few hundred to over 2,000.   

Recently, inland aquaculture researchers of National Agriculture Research Institute’s (NARI) livestock project from Labu near Lae visited Wantoat, a remote part of the Markham district, upon request by smallholder fish farmers in the area. 

Wantoat fish farmers and NARI researcher Suzie Gebo (right)

 The visit was organised as part of a NARI smallholder livestock development project, funded under the public investment programme (PIP) of the national government.

 It was a consultative visit to gather information on the status of inland aquaculture activities in the area.

The meeting with the fish farmers explored needs for technical assistance in relation to this activity.

There was interest in fish farming but there was lack of skills and technical know-how in raising fish in ponds.

An important issue pointed out by fish farmers was the absence of quality fish feed.

Feeding low value feed and the high cost of developing quality feed is hindering the progress of this activity.

There are a lot of good feed ingredients available but major components of a basic fish diet like fish meal, millrun and copra meal, were not readily available.

These ingredients are needed to produce quality fish feed. 

Another major constraint faced by the fish farmers is the lack of access to markets for their fish. They are producing large numbers of fish which can be sold to supermarkets or restaurants within Lae city.

However, that is not happening, thus resulting in huge surpluses of fish.

There is a great need for a market network to be set up for these fish farmers.

NARI researchers in collaboration with needy smallholder farmers plan to organise a group of fish marketing trials to try to establish a market link between fish farmers in the villages and the markets in Lae.

With the support of local government services, major constraints of smallholder fish farmers in remote places like Wantoat can be overcome.

Such issues faced by fish farmers in Wantoat and other remote areas, should be taken on board by extension service providers, researchers, development practitioners and policy makers alike, to look into developing appropriate strategies that can enable them to have easy access to major feed ingredients for quality fish feed, as well as an established market network for sale of fish. By creating an enabling environment for fish farmers, their efforts can be well rewarded and they will be motivated to do more thus helping to boost the local economy.

Somares’ referrals of public interest

Leader of PNG Party Belden Namah has urged the Supreme Court, Public Prosecutor and the Ombudsman Commission (OC) to speed up the referral process of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare and his son, Public Enterprises Arthur Somare, both facing alleged misconduct charges.

Namah noted that the referral of the father and son by the OC involving two high profile state officials was of public interest and the constitutional office holders were duty bound to ensure the cases were dealt with in a timely manner.

He stressed that the people of Papua New Guinea expected speedier result of the court appeal by Sir Michael to stop the OC from investigating his alleged misconduct charges relating to declaration of annual returns.

Namah said the matter involving Sir Michael and Minister Somare were of national interest and the people of Papua New Guinea were entitled to get a decision one way or another.

He pointed out that the case involving the Prime Minister went before the High Court in 2008, over two years ago.

"Why has it taken the Supreme Court so long?

The public is becoming suspicious.

 It is in the Supreme Court's interest to bolster the public confidence in the High Court," he stressed.

The OC alleges that Sir Michael failed to lodge annual returns for the periods 1994/5, 1995/96 and 1996/7, his lodgement returns for the periods 1998/99, 1999/2000, 2000/01, 2001/02, 20003/04 and incomplete statements for periods 1992/93, 1993/94,1997/98, 1999/2000, 2000.01, 20001/02 and 20002/03.

The OC referred the Grand Chief to the Public Prosecutor for it to ask the Chief Justice to appoint a Leadership Tribunal to deal with the allegations, but Sir Michael went to court seeking orders to stop the OC from investigating him.

On June 24, 2008, National Court Judge, Justice Derek Hartshorn rejected an application by Sir Michael for a temporary injunction to stop the OC from investigating him.

When rejecting Sir Michael's temporary injunction, Judge Hartshorn ruled that it was not in the interest of the justice of the general public that lawful authorities should be prevented from performing their legal and constitutional duties.

The PM had gone to court asking the court to grant him certain declarations and a permanent injunction preventing the OC from continuing its investigations.

Sir Michael had contended that the OC lacked jurisdiction to continue the investigations.

The conduct of their investigations was oppressive, subject to excessive delays and breached the rules of natural justice to act fairly reasonably and in good faith.

The PM also alleged that the decision not to engage an independent examiner under section 19 of the Organic Law on Duties and Responsibilities of Leadership, as requested by him was decided by an individual and not the majority quorum of three independent constitutional office holders despite bias allegations raised by his client against the commission.

However, Judge Hartshorn in a seven-page decision stated that Sir Michael did not have a strong case to stop the OC from continuing its investigations.

 "It is not in the interest of justice or the public interest that lawful authorities should be prevented from carrying out their lawful investigations.

"Any such prevention should only occur in very clear cases of abuse," Judge Hartshorn stressed.

The judge was satisfied given the evidence before him that the PM's appeal was not serious and the OC be allowed to continue its investigations.

Effectively, the ruling meant that the Public Prosecutor could proceed to ask the Chief Justice to appoint a leadership tribunal to determine the charges against Sir Michael.

On June 30, 2008, the PM's lawyers refiled their appeal matter in the Supreme Court to be heard that afternoon.

The appeal matter related to the refusal of the National Court to grant an order restraining the OC from investigating the PM on an alleged breach of the Leadership Code.

PM's lawyers filed a notice of appeal basically appealing the whole of the judgment of Derek Hartshorn in dismissing their notice of motion.

In the notice of appeal,  they relied on seven grounds saying that in respect of each and every grounds, the National Court erred in the exercise of its discretion which if not overturned would result in the unlawful actions of an authority going unscrutinised by the court and causing serious injustice to the appellant.

The Supreme Court is yet to make a ruling of this matter.

Arthur Somare is also alleged to be in trouble with the law and was referred by the OC on February 28, 2006 to the Public Prosecutor for prosecution under the Leadership Code.

He was referred over allegation that he failed to give annual statements on time that he misapplied his district support grant (DSG) funds and allegedly failed to acquit these funds' expenditure.

The OC alleged that K250, 000 of DSG was allegedly deposited into Somare's electorate trust account held at the Australian and New Zealand Bank Limited, Waigani Branch in Port Moresby.

It is alleged that he then applied the funds in the form of unverifiable cash cheques to individuals; made cheque payment of various amounts for various activities; and made cheque withdrawals for which no details are available.

Despite Somare's assertion that he used for the purposes intended for under the relevant laws, the OC alleged that there appear to be cases where the MP has applied proceeds of the DSG to activities which the relevant guidelines specify as ineligible.

The OC has stated that other payments do not have quotations, receipts, etc to ascertain credibility and genuineness in their applications.

"It appears that the leader applied public funds contrary to the relevant guidelines that provide for, among others, the prudent application and acquittal of these funds," the OC has stated.

It is also alleged that Somare failed without reasonable excuse to provide the watch dog organisation on time his annual statements which details of his assets, income, gifts, business interests and dealings and debts and liabilities.

They are for the following periods: July 16 1998 to July 15 1999; July 15 1999 to July 15 2000; and July 16 2000 to July 16 2001.

The OC said Somare failed to submit his annual statements for the above periods when they were due acting contrary to the requirements of Section 4 of the Organic Law on the Duties and Responsibilities of Leadership."

Section 4 of the Organic Law on the Duties and Responsibilities of the Leadership requires every person who is subject to the Leadership Code to furnish the OC every year details of assets, income and other required information.

Namah said that he was merely asking the Supreme Court, Public Prosecutors and the Ombudsman Commission to perform their constitutional duties and roles speedily in the public interest.

"The constitutional office holders owe it to the nation and people to make an effort to decide in these cases in the national interest.

"It is not our intention to interfere with the work of these important constitutional offices, but expect them to do their job speedily," he concluded.

APEC Finance Ministers contribute priorities to secure future growth

Issued by the APEC Secretariat

Kyoto, Japan, 6 November 2010 – APEC Finance Ministers agreed to contribute priorities for future growth at their meeting here on Saturday after exchanging views on current economic and financial developments and policy direction in the Asia-Pacific region.

 Issuing a statement at the end of their meeting, Ministers emphasised the importance for APEC members to take policy measures to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth in the region.

For the joint ministerial statement, visit: http://www.apec.org/apec/ministerial_statements/sectoral_ministerial/finance/2010_finance.html

Ministers agreed to submit the “Kyoto Report on Growth Strategy and Finance” to APEC Economic Leaders for their consideration when they meet next week in Yokohama.

The report identifies priorities for securing future growth, including rebalancing and strengthening of global demand, pursuing sound fiscal management, and enhancing finance to key sectors such as infrastructure, small and medium enterprises, households and green investment.

 In their joint statement Ministers acknowledged that the global economy is recovering from the recent financial crisis, but uncertainty remains.

While growth in the region is uneven across economies, they said financial reforms are proceeding and that APEC economies should continue to take steps to build a stronger and more resilient global financial system.

They also said that they remain committed to maintaining open markets and fighting protectionism.

 In support of recent moves by the G20, Ministers agreed to strengthen multilateral cooperation to promote external sustainability and pursue the full range of policies conducive to reducing excessive imbalances and maintaining current account imbalances at sustainable levels.

 Because of the weight of APEC economies and their role in the global economy, Ministers recognised that each member, whether a surplus or deficit economy, has to implement policy measures.

Economies with current account deficits will need to take steps to boost domestic saving while those with current account surpluses need to reduce their reliance on external demand and undertake structural reforms that catalyze stronger domestic demand-led growth.

 Ministers also said that they will move towards more market-determined exchange rate systems that reflect underlying economic fundamentals and will refrain from competitive devaluation of currencies. 

 They also said that they need to ensure appropriate financing for several key areas, including for infrastructure, to strengthen growth, enhance productivity, alleviate poverty and improve access to service delivery systems.

Ministers said they will continue to support emerging APEC economies as they implement public-private partnership infrastructure projects, including through a new mentoring program to be launched next year.

 Addressing the needs of micro, small and medium-size enterprises, and households, Ministers launched an APEC Financial Inclusion Initiative to identify concrete actions that financial policy makers can take to expand the reach of financial services to those that need them.

 Ministers committed to taking action to raise international regulatory standards to ensure a level playing field and avoid fragmentation of markets, protectionism and regulatory arbitrage while also recognising the importance of creating more open and integrated financial markets in the region.

 International financial institutions, including the Asian Development Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank also addressed the meeting and provided analysis and economic forecasts for the region.

 The outcomes of the 17^th APEC Finance Ministers’ Meeting will be delivered to APEC Economic Leaders when they meet in Yokohama, Japan next weekend.

#  #  #

For more information please contact:

Michael Chapnick (in Japan): +65 9647-4847 (mobile) or mc@apec.org

Trudy Harris (in Japan): +81 (0)80 34173130 or +65 98983710 (mobiles) or th@apec.org

A tribute to the ‘bird man’ of Crater Mountain

By MALUM NALU

The death of leading Papua New Guinea ornithologist (bird scientist)  Paul Igag –internationally renowned for his work  in the Crater Mountain area of Eastern Highlands province –  has left a huge vacuum and big shoes to fill within the PNG scientific community.

Paul Igag…a lifetime passion for birds

Igag, 46, from Krangket village in Madang province, died suddenly last Friday in Goroka after suffering pains in his chest.

The scientific community in both PNG and overseas is mourning the death of Igag, PNG’s first national expert on birds from PNG, who held a PhD

He was one of the first scientific staff at the young Research and Conservation Foundation of PNG, became one of the first scientific staff at the Wildlife Conservation Society PNG Programme, and then became a founder of the PNG Institute of Biological Research.

Igag, who was born on Feb 24, 1964, was a leader in PNG's movement toward greater scientific autonomy.

Dozens of students and his co-workers affectionately called him "Uncle Paul”.

Close friends and scientific colleagues have created an online memorial in memory of Igag, which they hope will create a good profile of his life and a last record and tribute of all of his accomplishments.

The memorial, needless to say, has been overflowing, which just goes to show the respect Igag commanded both in PNG and overseas.

“Paul (Igag) was PNG's first home-grown ornithologist,” said longtime colleague Dr Andrew Mack.

“He bridged the world of village PNG and Western academia. 

“In the field Paul worked well with local assistants and he always trained up a good team of young men and women to help with his various field projects. 

“Back in town, Paul collaborated with top ornithologists worldwide.

“Paul's research covered many topics, but his real passion was large parrots. 

“He made important discoveries about palm cockatoos and vulturine parrots that have and will continue to help guide conservation of these threatened species.

“We all grieve, but we should also celebrate how lucky we were to have been in the presence of such a wonderful man.”

Igag had worked on the conservation biology of various species at Crater Mountain since 1999 with the support of the Wildlife Conservation Society (New York).

With generous support from the Pacific Biological Foundation, he came to the Australian National University in 2001 to study for a Masters degree under the supervision of Rob Heinsohn and Sarah Legge.

The aim of Igag’s research was to outline the breeding biology and likely causes of threat to three species of large parrot found in the New Guinea rainforest.

Palm cockatoos (Probosciger aterrimus) and Pesquet’s parrots (Psittrichus fulgidus) are threatened by over-exploitation for food and the thriving trade in their feathers, and along with Eclectus parrots (Eclectus roratus) are threatened by loss of habitat.

In January this year, the work of Igag and PNGIBR colleague Miriam Supuma, was featured on a high-acclaimed BBC documentary by international environmental icon Sir David Attenborough on the increasingly-rare birds of paradise.

The documentary followed Igag and Supuma as they went about researching how killing birds of paradise for feathers for ceremonial headdress was endangering rare species.

Supuma described him as “a dear friend who will be missed”.

“I especially admired his humbleness, generosity, enthusiasm and energy for work and was in awe of his knowledge of birds when I spent some time with him and the BBC crew filming the Bird of Paradise Documentary back in Aug 2008,” she said.

“I am lucky to have worked with ‘Uncle’ Paul.

“Like most scientists, there is this thirst for knowledge, inquisitiveness about various things in life that intrigues one.

“Apart from biology, I found ‘Uncle’ Paul to be someone who read broadly especially on religion, spiritualism, astrology, and history.”

Supuma remembers Igag once telling her about a supernatural experience along the wartime Bulldog Trail between Wau in Morobe province and Gulf province.

“I once heard Uncle Paul talk about unusual or sinister encounters in the field,” she says.

“He once told us a story of an experience along Bulldog Trail, Lakekamu Basin.

“He was checking mist nests early dusk, in the mid -1990s, and mentioned of this truck in the middle of nowhere honking its horn and chasing him through the dense foliage!

“He later went on to give another example of himself and Michael Kigl doing field work in Manus and experiencing something similar.                       

“He wanted to understand why this phenomenon occurred - whether it was the mind playing games after a long exhausting day, or the fact that there really existed a spiritual realm.

“He read the Bible and other literature to try to understand this phenomenon.”

The National journalist Thomas Hukahu, who went to school with Igag at Aiyura National High School in Eastern Highlands and later University of PNG, has fond memories of the man.

“In reminiscing, I can understand that Igag, when getting himself into something would be completely passionate about it,” Hukahu remembers.

“He was a person who loved the outdoors and practical life; thus he chose biology - the life science - to study at UPNG.

“Igag did not come the easy way in life to get to where he was before passing away last Friday.

“I know from his stories that he was a school leaver doing College of Distance Education (CODE) studies in Lae, part-timing with doing ‘bicycle kicks’ at the soccer fields, and was accepted to continue to do grade 11 at Aiyura in 1986.

“I first met Igag a year later as his junior at Aiyura, which waste best national high school in the country at that time.

“To many of us, his juniors at Aiyura and UPNG, Igag was ‘Polex’, the jovial soccer star and big brother.

“We rarely saw him exhibiting a bad temper.

“And he had heaps of jokes and fun to put your dark days away.

“In 1989 we joined Igag again at UPNG.

“His enthusiasm for life, clean fun and soccer had him, Boga Figa from Madang and Emunare Embe from Morobe  - all ex-Aiyurans -  organising us, mainly ex-Aiyurans and a few ex-Kerevats,  to form No Gat Nem (NGN), a soccer team participating in the campus competition.

“The competition was run by Eric Kwa, now UPNG’s associate professor in law and a peer of Igag, and his Morobe boys. 

“With the leadership of the big boys, who were also playing for University in Port Moresby soccer competition, NGN scooped up three awards in the competition in its first year: best and fairest team, best midfielder and top goal scorer.

“The top goal scorer went to our striker Leonard Boaz from Solomon Islands.  

“In the second year Samuel Koyama from East Sepik same on board as the coach/player of NGN and we continued the fun with Igag and others.”

“The natural science academia will certainly miss Igag, the passionate researcher and academic but we, his many friends, school mates and small boys will certainly miss him, the amiable big brother.”

Igag is survived by seven children from two wives.

“Paul (Igag) was a longtime friend and schoolmate,” PNGIBR colleague, forest ecologist Banak Gamui, said.

“He was a passionate man and never had any enemies.

“He always was an icrebreaker in people’s darkest moments.

“His death is a great loss to his friends and family, as well as the scientific community.”

Igag’s body will be flown from Goroka to Madang today and will be at Krangket village until Sunday when a service will be held at 9am.

His body will be laid to rest at 2pm on Sunday.

For more details contact Banak on 72738242 or Francis Igag on 72742102 at Krangket village.

PNG Party promises free education

Party-led government will reintroduce its free education policy next year if the current National Alliance-led Government of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare is removed in this month’s Parliament session.

Making the undertaking, PNG Party leader Belden Namah said if in Government after this month’s parliament session, the free education policy would be re-introduced to relieve Papua New Guinea parents and guardians the burden of meeting the ever-increasing school fees.

As well, Namah has critically queried the current Somare government’s genuineness of providing universal basic education (UBE) for Papua New Guinea.

He questioned the genuineness of a Prime Ministerial announcement on September 16, 2010 on Independence Hill by Sir Michael which promised “to focus on education from this month onwards apart from health, law and order and transport infrastructure concerns”.

Namah stressed that the announcement by Sir Michael should not be taken seriously by the people of this country.

“Is this the same Prime Minister who vowed to scrape the free education policy initiated by the former Mekere Morauta Government before the 2002 general election?” he said.

“Is this the Prime Minister who, true to his words lived up to his promise to abolish free education policy the Morauta Government initiated and implemented during the three short years in office from 1999 to 2002?” Namah asked.

“Surely, this Prime Minister cannot be taken seriously considering the fact that he vehemently opposed free education just over eight years.

“The Prime Minister and his ‘Kitchen Cabinet’ must never be taken seriously by the majority of PNG citizens.

“It is Somare Government who abolished free education the Morauta Government introduced and implemented.

“This is yet another classical example of the Somare Government making public policy on the run.

 It is an announcement made on the spur of the moment due to public pressure.

“Our citizens must not allow themselves to be fooled by this government with grand announcements, promises and sweet talk, which eventually will translate to nothing.

“Instead, the people must be wary of what they are promised, especially in the coming months before the 2012 general election.”

Namah explained that during Sir Mekere’s term as Prime Minister, among other reforms, he shifted public expenditure to concentrate on free education and transport rehabilitation.

“PNG Party record speaks for itself.

“The whole nation including Sir Michael Somare knows about this.

“A government PNG Party is in will reintroduce free education.

“Human resources development is the vital asset for Papua New Guinea’s development.

“Education is a right for all PNG children and it is the Government’s duty to provide that service.

“We will provide that important service because we believe strongly in education and human resources. We believe Papua New Guinea is as good as its educated citizens.

“We will do this is line with the United Nations 2000 Millennium Development Goals which includes universal education as one of the eight priorities of all nations.”

Hohola market protest

 Protesters, mostly women, youths and children, were among the crowd that turned up at yesterday’s opening of the Lareva market at Hohola 2, brandishing placards protesting the new facility. The protesters said the new location was incomplete without proper toilet and water facilities. A placard held by women and children also said women’s safety was not guaranteed. A petition to that effect was given to NCD Governor Powes Parkop six months ago to no avail. But, yesterday, Parkop assured the vendors that proper water and toilet facilities would be attended to immediately.

K6 billion needed for Highlands Highway

By JUNIOR UKAHA

 

THE government needs about K6 billion to completely overhaul the Highlands Highway to modern standard, The National reports.

A study on the reconstruction, commissioned by developer of the liquefied natural gas project ExxonMobil, was presented to the Department of Works yesterday at Parliament House.

The cost estimate was put at US$2.2 billion (or K5.83 billion), according to government officials at the ceremony.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Works and Transport Don Polye was on hand to receive the report.

The report highlighted the phases of the upgrade of the entire 759km stretch from Lae in Morobe to Hides, Southern Highlands, over the next five years (2010-15) and how much it will cost.

The cost estimate included works on road and bridge redesign, reconstruction, maintenance and upgrading from Lae to Hides via Eastern Highlands, Chimbu and Western

Highlands.

The initial priority works designated in the study included immediate repairs and maintenance to five key sections – Kassam Pass, Daulo Pass, Chimbu-Eastern Highlands border and the area close to Mendi.

Polye said funding for the work would come from the government’s annual budgets and from borrowings onshore and offshore.

The project would be managed by the National Roads Authority and the Department of Works with input from an international consultant.

Polye said work had begun in some crucial sections of the Highlands Highway, funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and AusAID under separate arrangements.

He said the aim was to do a complete overhaul of the deteriorating highway and turn it from an outdated T40 (40 tonne) road and bridge system to a new T60 road and bridge structure.

He said constructing work on the highway would go into full swing next year.

 

 

Lending and land tough for business

AN international financial expert has expressed concerns that lending and freeing of land for development are  major economic constraints affecting local business, The National reports.

Outgoing country manager for International Financial Corp (IFC) Peter Cusack said two major concerns plaguing small business were its inability to borrow money from financial institutions and mobilising land for development.

Cusack said the opportunities for small business to borrow from the banks were limited, or at times non-existent, until the idea of micro-financing had emerged.

He said small business entrepreneurs could not expand or sustain operations due to limited capital and that lending institutions do not trust them.

On land mobilisation, there is a need for traditional land to be freed up for development.

Cusack said the government needs to help landowners in their land registration so they could benefit from any development that would take place on the land.

Meanwhile, the problem of financial lending will be eased when small business entrepreneurs are readily informed of the opportunities available through set of data, lenders’ profile and other necessary information provided by Credit & Data Bureau Ltd (CDBL).

CDBL is a PNG company established in 2008 by leading financial institutions. 

Managing director Bruce Mackinly said: “We supply our members with information that allows them to make informed credit and business decisions.

“We collect this information from our members and also from public records … we then make this information available to our members through a sophisticated but user-friendly software system accessed through the internet,” Mackinly said.

He said CDBL principal business was the operation of a credit bureau database where members could access the credit history and identify details about their customers. 

The credit bureau also assists members with debt collection involving defaulting debtors who are in the database.

Nape: What K30 million?

SPEAKER of parliament Jeffery Nape has hit out at claims that as much as K30 million was paid to him by the government, The National reports.

A statement issued by the speaker’s office said the rumour had been circulating the streets of Port Moresby, and the corridors of the national parliament, in recent months.

The rumour said Nape was given K5 million, some said K12 million and others said K30 million, the statement said.

“Nape does not know anything about such money being made available to him, and does not understand how such malicious rumours could be circulated,” the statement said.

“The office of the speaker categorically denies this rumour and wishes to inform members of parliament and the people of PNG that the rumour is false and malicious in nature.

“This rumour is being perpetrated by some people to discredit the good speaker of parliament for reasons only known to them,” the statement said.

The speaker is currently away on holidays, and could not be reached for comments.

The statement was signed and issued by his second secondary Apa Kua.

Nape would preside over parliament when it resumed in two weeks, and would determine whether or not to allow a notice of a motion of no-confidence in the prime minister to go on the floor.

The prime minister will face a vote of no-confidence if Nape allows the motion through.

The opposition was pushing for this, and was confident the speaker does not have any reason to deny the notice.

PM tasked on abuse claims

By ISAAC NICHOLAS

PRIME Minister Sir Michael Somare has stressed the “excellent working relationship with Indonesia” amid claims of human rights abuse in West Papua, Indonesia, The National reports.

Sir Michael and US secretary of state Hillary Clinton were holding a joint media conference on Wednesday in Port Moresby when Australian Associated Press journalist Ilya Gridneff posed the question about alleged human rights abuses in West Papua.

The prime minister said there were anti-Indonesian groups distributing such reports alleging human rights abuses.

He said the government of Susilo Bambang Yudyohono was paving the way forward for Indonesia which had seen the granting of special autonomy to some regions in the country.

Sir Michael said the working relationship between PNG and Indonesia had been very good.

He said Indonesia had started on a programme to bring back its citizens and one of them was his personal driver, who was now in Lake Sentani and travelled freely to PNG.

Sir Michael said trade along the border region had increased with people from West Sepik, East Sepik and Madang regularly visiting Indonesia.

Of the alleged human rights abuses, the prime minister said the PNG government was aware of the reports and the Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Abal had asked the Indonesian government for a response.

Clinton, in response to the question, said the US considered itself a friend and ally, claiming that any matter was discussed and explained.

“I have no comments to the specific matter referred to,” Clinton said.

“If there are continuous violence of human rights, they should be investigated and those responsible be held accountable,” she added.

Group queries market facility

By JASON GIMA WURI

A GROUP of protesters comprising mainly women, youths and children yesterday confronted NCD Governor Powes Parkop as he was about to open the new Lareva market at Hohola 2, The National reports.

The protesters said the new site did not have any water and toilet facilities, fuelling threats of cholera and other diseases.

They also raised concerns on petty crimes and other illegal activities including the safety of women and girls using and visiting the market.

Hohola community chairman Abraham Araupe said a petition outlining these concerns were given to Parkop six months ago but to no avail.

“The market is now sitting right in the middle of our recreational area.

“There is no proper licencing from the NCD lands board and the market was built without proper facilities, planning and health inspections being carried out,” Araupe said.

Community leaders yesterday threatened to take out a court injunction against Parkop and NCDC.

However, Parkop told the protesters that the market had to be moved for the city’s benefit.

“We cannot listen to only one part of a group of people but, instead, we have to get everyone’s views - those from the Highlands, the Papuans, New Guinea Islands and Momase.

“This market does not belong to the Hagens or the Keremas only. It belongs to all of us in the city; it will improve our people’s lives with the vegetables and betelnuts sold here,” Parkop said.

“I understand and take into account your concerns for security, rubbish and health hazards.

“New toilets and water facilities will be in place immediately in the coming weeks.”

He also challenged the community to organise itself and collect taxes from the vendors to pay for security and the upkeep of the market.

The NCD governor also thanked Digicel and BSP for providing 300 and 100 beach umbrellas respectively for distribution to the market vendors.

Westpac to join LNG bandwagon

By PATRICK TALU

WESTPAC Bank PNG Ltd, the oldest bank in the country, will tap into the emerging banking opportunities spawned by the mining and petroleum boom, particularly the gas project, The National reports.

Incoming general manager for Pacific banking Greg Pawson told the media in Port Moresby yesterday the Pacific was a key focus for Westpac and PNG was one of the most focused areas that would  see the bank’s three strategies carried out.

“We are excited about some of the emerging opportunities particularly the gas project and the mining,” Pawson said.

“We are very eager to invest and leverage in terms of where we are now and we are mapping out a three-year strategic plan.

Pawson outlined the three key focus areas as:

* Investment in emerging market opportunities;

* Retails banking; and

* Strong business banking.

Investment in the emerging market opportunity was  along term concern, Pawson said.

On retail banking, there is no need to open new branches but instead, improvement should come in for wider and efficient banking services.

“On business banking, we are looking at how we can take that to the next level where we are looking at a significant relationship with the government, the diplomatic corps and other big corporate organisation to contribute to the growth of the economy of Papua New Guinea,” Pawson said.

Westpac managing director for PNG Ashleigh Matheson said as part of the three-year strategy, a state-of-the-art internet banking services was under way