Koki crossings dangerous

BY JONATHAN KUIMBE, Port Moresby

I CALL on NCD Governor Powes Parkop to look into building an overhead bridge at Koki.

The two current crossings are very dangerous and, sooner or later, someone will be killed.

 

The truth will prevail

By SHAN-LIN CHEN, Trade Mission of Taiwan representative

 

ON behalf of the government of Taiwan, I am writing in response to an article entitled “Opposition demands action on Taiwan scandal” (The National, Jan 15).

 Taiwan is a democratic country and its independent judiciary is currently conducting a full and thorough investigation into the case mentioned in the article.

My government, therefore, has every confidence that truth and justice will prevail.

As Taiwan’s representative, I will naturally be providing all relevant information to the Government as soon as the final verdict is delivered.

Time to flatten Genoka

By AMBO

 

Goroka is turning into a haven for lawlessness and fast becoming a cowboy town.

Genoka is one such place that accommodates thugs and criminals.

I wonder whether the Goroka administration has the power to barricade Genoka.

 It should give the settlers the ultimatum to leave on their own or they would be forced out.

After that, the settlement should be flattened.

The peace-loving people of Goroka are fed up with these criminals.

 We want to live in peace.

So sad many smart students miss out

By WAIMIN WASIA

 

MANY brilliant students in the country are missing out every year because of the school fee problem.

It is very sad to see thousands of brilliant students, especially from poor families, leaving universities and colleges every year with tears streaming down from their eyes.

Is that how PNG will improve its human resource and move forward?

The Government must subsidise some of the school fees because human resource is vital for the development of this nation.

The Government is not allocating enough money to education, particularly OHE.

As a result, many tertiary students were missing out on HECAS although they met the requirements.

The Government must strive to produce marketable intellectuals instead of sending young talented Papua New Guineans as cheap labour to neighbouring countries.

PNG must be competent with the rest of the world.

Because of its negligence in education, PNG is far behind in world education standard.

Update from Bulo MP Sam Basil in Australia

Last Saturday Bulolo MP Sam Basil’s guide from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) Tim Morris accompanied him to Kwinana outside Perth to witness a traditional ceremony.

“The elder of the Yargon tribe Trevor Wally gave a fire gift to me after the fire ceremony witnessed by the Kwinana deputy mayor Dennis Woods,” Mr Basil said.

“A gift was also presented by the deputy mayor and I presented three Bulolo bilums to the officials.

“On Sunday we flew from Perth to Karratha from where I am currently visiting landowners and affected communities asking questions and doing comparison with PNG systems and the Australian indigenous system.”

 

Bulolo MP Sam Basil travels to Australia

Bulolo MP Sam Basil has done it again.

Mr Basil, who recently returned from the USA after attending the inauguration of President Barrack Obama, left for Australia last Friday for a weeklong visit at the invitation of the Australian government.

He returns on March 1.

Australian High Commissioner to PNG Chris Moraitis announced the trip in the presence of Mr Basil at a press conference last Thursday.

Mr Moraitis said the programme, known as the Australian Special Visitors Programme, was aimed at “up-and-coming” people such as Mr Basil to visit and give them a “very good insight” into the country.

He said Mr Basil would visit Western Australian, Victoria and Canberra meeting with politicians, parliamentary secretaries, and business houses such as Newcrest, a joint venture partner with Harmony in the Hidden Valley gold mine in Wau.

Previous PNG beneficiaries of the programme, which has been run over many years, include politicians Paul Tienstien and Sam Abal, and journalist Frank Senge Kolma, among many others.

“We hope Sam (Basil) has a good visit there,” Mr Moraitis said.

“We’re happy to do that before Parliament resumes in March.”

Mr Basil said it was an honour for his Bulolo electorate to travel overseas so soon after his visit to the USA.

“I’m very fortunate to go overseas this time, this time to Australia,” he said.

“This trip will really help me to understand Australia.”

Mr Basil gave a vote of thanks to the Australian government, through its High Commission, for making the trip possible.

 

Over 100 UK companies seek PNG partners

Over 100 United Kingdom companies are seeking business partners in Papua New Guinea.

UK Exporters Ltd, a Bristol-based company that runs a database of over 18,500 UK exporters, has listed 136 companies that are looking for business partners in PNG.

They are generally seeking new business, agents and distributors or are hoping to add to their customer-base in the region.

The companies range from manufacturers of fuel flow modulators and cleaning chemicals to chocolate and biscuit makers.

Each UK company listed has a direct link to their company profile which show all the products or services they are offering.

Each individual company may be contacted direct from their company profile which includes their e-mail and web addresses.

Interested PNG companies can access their details from the UK Exporters Ltd website http://www.exportuk.co.uk/agents.asp or via the British High Commission Website http://www.ukinpng.fco.gov.uk

The UK companies’ interest in business opportunities in PNG follows the recent announcement by the London and Port Moresby Stock Exchange-listed New Britain Palm Oil (NBPOL) to build a £18 million (K68 million) palm oil processing facility in the UK.

UK High Commissioner to PNG, David Dunn, said that whilst the world was experiencing a global trade downturn the interest in PNG showed by UK companies was an indication of the strong and growing commercial relationship between the two countries.

“The NBPOL investment is excellent news for the UK and is a further indication of the deepening commercial relationship between the two countries. The UK is PNG's fourth largest commercial partner and the clear destination of choice for PNG inward investment to Europe,” he added.

Copies of the UK Exporters List for PNG have also been passed on to the PNG Investment Promotion Authority (IPA).