PRESIDENT of the PNG Amateur Boxing Union (PNGABU) Lohial Nuau, who is also the head of the Oceania Continental Boxing Confederation (OCBC), has been suspended for two years by its parent body, the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA), The National reports.
The penalty meted out by the AIBA executive committee was effective from Dec 18 last year.
The suspension stems from Nuau’s failure to acquit funds annually which AIBA had allocated to the PNGABU for the running of the union’s office as well as claims for consultancy fees and monies for international travel and other “unexplained and/or unreasonable expenses and receipts”, according to a report published on AIBA’s website.
The report was made public last month (June 18) from its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.
AIBA’s executive director Ho Kim, in handing down the decision, said Nuau had repeatedly failed to provide the executive committee acquittals for various expenses some of which were dubious in nature.
Although Nuau provided an explanation on Dec 16 last year, which included his OCBC finance report, AIBA found evidence of “numerous unconsiderable (sic) expenses and wrongdoings” from the information provided, and launched its own investigation.
The report described Nuau’s response to be “inadequate” and AIBA’s finance commission chairman David B. Francis further stated:
“I also believe there must be some deeper rooted problems that need investigation”.
The three-term PNGABU president was suspended “from all positions in AIBA with immediate effect” on Dec 18 last year. He received notice to this effect together with attachments related to the case (invoices, proof of payments, etc…) from AIBA’s legal manager Anthony Downes three days later on Dec 21.
Among the findings were Nuau’s claims for apparent office space for the PNGABU in Port Moresby with payments made to Naleai Electrical Contractors Ltd for use of its promises.
However this business can not be located in the company register of PNG.
This company had been receiving payments of US$1000 (K3, 300) a month since Jan 2008 as per an office lease agreement but was later discovered to be the residence of a close acquaintance of Nuau.
Other improprieties uncovered by the investigation were Nuau’s signing of a consultancy agreement with IPAVE Ltd for services in amending the constitution and structure of the OCBC, and not acquitting US$5,000 (K15,000) in travel fares for an aborted trip to Milan, Italy to attend the AIBA world championships.
Again there was no evidence of the existence of IPAVE Ltd in the country’s register of companies nor has Nuau repaid the travel expenses.
The firm was paid US$5,500 (K16, 600) as a result of Nuau’s advice.
The reported stated that from the evidence examined “Nuau improperly engaged in business with related parties, on behalf of the OCBC, which enabled him to obtain an improper benefit at the expense of OCBC.”
An estimated K100, 000 in funds was misused, according to the report; however it added that there was a need for further investigation to determine if other offences were committed.
The report stated in conclusion: “The behaviour of Mr Nuau certainly does not meet the standards that one could reasonably expect from the president of a continental federation and constitutes violations of the AIBA disciplinary code (not the least of which is the principle of integrity).
In a significant move, the report also acknowledged the presence of a working committee which was established within the PNGABU. This committee, formed by concerned associations affiliated to the union, informed AIBA president Dr Ching-Kuo Wu in April this year that it had previously (March 23) challenged in court Nuau’s position as PNGABU president. The Port Moresby District court subsequently ruled in favour of the working committee ordering the country’s overall sports governing body the PNG Sports Federation and Olympic Committee to immediately recognise them. Furthermore, the court ordered that PNGSFOC be restrained from dealings with Nuau and the PNGABU executives. It also ordered all union accounts be frozen. This information was passed on to AIBA’s disciplinary committee.
Nuau and his executive filed in court to have the decision quashed and a recent exparte order (July 6) ruled in favour of the current PNGABU executive.
When contacted yesterday Nuau would not answer questions on his suspension or any related matter.
This week, I was pleasantly surprised to receive some
amazing old photographs of Lae from Denis Murrell, a former teacher at the
iconic BugandiHigh
School. Murrell is now a freelance consultant and writer in China.
He taught at Bugandi from 1968-1971 and is now aged 63, albeit,
with fond memories of Bugandi and Lae the way they used to be.
Murrell’s pictures include those of the school entrance with
the Mercedes-Benz of legendary Bugandi principal (headmaster) Jack Amesbury in
the background.
Entrance
to BugandiHigh School, which
has changed a lot
over the years, with legendary headmaster Jack Amesbury's Mercedes-Benz in the background.-Pictures courtesy of DENIS
MURRELL
Under Amesbury’s guidance, Bugandi became a great and famous
school – a far cry from what it is today - producing many students who went on
to become academic, political and business leaders in Papua New Guinea.
“I was sent to teach at BugandiHigh School
in January, 1968,” Murrell remembers.
Two
teachers responsible for the construction of the Bugandi swimming pool,
Rhys
James and Bernard Swift
“It was my first teaching position apart from a short spell
practice-teaching at GorokaHigh School.
“I saw Bugandi for the first time from the back seat of the
principal’s Mercedes-Benz: a neat set of single and double-storeyed buildings
situated behind lush, green, well-tended parkland and sports ovals bordered
with red canna lilies planted by teacher, Jock Maloney, many years before,
variegated crotons and painted, white stones.
Denis
Murrel (back) in his English class at Bugandi in 1968
“Bugandi had been built on the site of a former swamp, a
place where people said it would be impossible to build anything.
“At first, just 10 acres were cleared of rainforest and a
mess, two houses, a dormitory and two classrooms were built.
“That was in 1959 and amazingly, classes began soon after
Jan 21, 1960.
“The school was called BugandiUpperPrimary School and there
were just 78 students in standards 7, 8 and 9 and three teachers, two from
overseas and one Papua New Guinean.
Work
parade at Bugandi in 1968
“By 1962, the name had been changed to BugandiJunior High School
and in the following year, a man famous throughout the land, Jack Amesbury, was
appointed as principal.
“He worked successive groups of students hard over the
years, to take the land back from the water, fell trees, clear undergrowth,
build roads, plant lawns and gardens and construct playing fields and livestock
pastures and I could see the results of this hard work as I travelled down the
driveway in Jack’s car.
Bugandi
students working in the classroom
“The school had become a full high school in 1965.
“There were 257 students by then, enrolled in forms 1 and 2,
but in 1966, Bugandi began enrolling students from all over the New Guinea mainland
and forms 3 and 4 were begun.
“In 1968, for the first time, 87 boys sat for the
intermediate certificate while another 58 sat for their school certificate examination.
“When I arrived there were problems; Jack was trying to
develop another oval in order to accommodate all the rugby league teams that
played at the school each week, but the trees were found to be full of shrapnel.
Bruce
Owner, teacher at Bugandi in 1969 and 1970
“The area closer to the Markham River had been a
battleground between Australian and Japanese troops in the Second World War and
students often found bits and pieces of Japanese war materiel and occasionally
dangerous, unexploded bombs.
“So after 1968, no new land was opened up and a
consolidation began.
One of
Bugandi's first female teachers, Joyce Stephenson, in 1969
“Existing buildings were improved or extended.
“The last piece of land developed was an Australian football
oval while the last building erected during my stay was a chapel/assembly hall.”
Student
brings in his laundry after work parade
Murrell remembers Amesbury as a stocky, sandy-haired man with
a demanding expression and occasional wry smile, a former Royal Australian Navy
man.
“He had been present on an Australian vessel at Wewak during
the surrender of the Japanese and, consequently, he ran his school like the
huge naval ship that he had been used to.
“Jack always referred to his students, no matter how young,
as ‘men’ and his first words at every assembly were always ‘right men! on deck!’
“The students were up at the crack of dawn to shower in the
ablution blocks.
“They ate a breakfast of wheat-meal cakes with jam and hot
tea in the mess and then listened to the morning news on 9LA as they prepared
for lessons.
“Some boys were rostered each day to keep the area around
their domitories clean and tidy.
Getting ready for work parade at the
Bugandi assembly ground
“They wore government-issued white cotton drill shirts and
navy or khaki shorts.
“Assembly was at seven sharp and no-one, absolutely no-one,
was ever late.
“The assembly area in those days was to the right of the
main drive-way into the school, in front of Jack’s office and the small
staffroom, which was quite inadequate for a staff of 24.
“After assembly, English master, Charles Cazabon, and his
staff, would take all the form one students to the two messes for 20 minutes of
English language drills, while the other students went straight to classes.
“Students were punished for speaking their own village
languages and Tok Pisin.
“They were required to speak English at all times and were
reported to the principal by the prefects if they did not.”
During lessons, Jack Amesbury would often suddenly appear at
a classroom window and take all the boys - Bugandi was a boys’ school in those
days - and the teacher, out to work on the school farm or some other task.
“Classrooms had usually 25 double-desks accommodating up to
50 students per class.
“Sometimes there was a cupboard and for the teacher, there
was a table - but no chair.
“Jack Amesbury didn’t like his teachers to sit down during
their lessons.
“Some teachers would sit on a desk or even on the table but
would always keep a wary eye out for an approaching principal.
“If you were caught sitting during a lesson, you could
expect to be scolded in a way that only Jack could manage, and in front of your
students too.
“Lessons for the students finished at 1pm and were followed
by lunch, usually consisting of kaukau, other vegetables and soup.
“Boys rostered to mess duty helped the cooks to serve and
clean up.
“The school was divided in to four houses and one house had
to do work parade one day per week, all afternoon, until about 4.30.
“Some boys worked on the farm or at caring for the flower
gardens, some cut grass with their serifs around teachers’ homes, while others
cleaned the ablution blocks.
“Some boys worked on special projects like building the new
swimming pool, or constructing the fish ponds, the new chapel/assembly hall or
the tractor shed, while others ran the school tuck-shop operated by the Bantin
Co-operative Society, whose president was Utula Samana.
“Selected boys helped Charles Cazabon in the library and
others helped me to print t-shirts in the art room.
“After work parade, the students could relax until dinner or
perhaps do their laundry.
“Dinner consisted of rice, instead of kaukau, and some green
vegetables like aibika or spinach with some bully-beef or tinned mackerel.
“Immediately after that, from 7 until 9, boys went for night
study in their classrooms, supervised by duty teachers.
“No-one could be late or absent without a good reason and
the duty teacher would count the students present in each room.
“Following that, students were then free for an hour but had
to be in bed by 10pm, lights-out time.
“Students could go into Lae town with permission on
Saturdays and Sundays but they had to be back in their dormitories by midnight
on Saturdays and 10pm on Sundays and the duty teacher and prefects would be
waiting to catch those who might be late.
“There was usually a small group of boys up for punishment
on Monday mornings for being back late.
The school, according to Murrell, had 20 prefects appointed
by Jack Amesbury and presided over by the school captain and his deputy.
“These two students were in control of over 300 boys who not
only studied, ate, slept and worked but who also took part in such things as
debating, art activities, the Cadet Corps, first aid activities, scouting,
civil defence, preparing the school magazine, the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme,
traditional dancing, the organisation of the annual school mumu, and of course,
sport.
“They played rugby league, Australian football, hockey,
basketball, cricket, volleyball and baseball.
“Many teams from all over Lae played in a rugby league
competition held at the school each Saturday and every Bugandi student was
required to take part.
Bugandi
teacher Charles Cazabon and his wife at top town in Lae.He taught at
Bugandi
from 1967 until 1970
“On Friday nights, students watched a 16mm movie flown over
from George Page’s store in Port
Moresby, movies like ‘Elephant Walk’ or ‘Giant’.
“During that first year and during the three further years I
taught at the school, I cannot remember any boy not working hard to prepare for
his future.
“In the late sixties, it was not easy for a boy to go to
high school and boys who were selected used their lucky chance wisely.
“They knew that any boy who didn’t follow the Bugandi way of
doing things could be immediately dismissed and sent back to his village."
Last Friday evening, I was at the Weigh Inn Hotel
at Konedobu, having a quite yarn with former kiap (patrol officer) Graham Pople, already the subject of two
articles in The National’s Weekender
about Papua New Guinea
as it used to be.
Graham Pople besides a picture of the Port Moresby Post Office in its heyday.-Picture by MALUM NALU
Response to the two articles, which touched on
his memories about his kiap days, has
been quite phenomenal and I asked him why kiaps
could conduct a census on foot in those days while government officers with
millions of kina can’t do likewise in 2010.
Preparing for a census in Laiagam in 1959.-Pictures by GRAHAM POPLE
An interesting point, as earlier last week, the
much talked-about 2010 census had been deferred to 2011 because of various
reasons including “insufficient funding”.
It’s early days yet, however, this could have
adverse effects on services such as health, education, infrastructure,
law-and-order, the much-vaunted Vision 2050 and even the 2012 national
elections.
Pople’s never-before-published autobiography and
patrol diaries contain reminisces of his days as a kiap and Member of the first Papua and New Guinea House of Assembly
in 1964.
Traditional bridge over a river in Laiagam
Simply titled The Popleography, it gives a fascinating insight into life in the
then Territory of Papua and New Guinea in those far-off
pre-independence days, as well as the first House of Assembly.
Pople writes candidly about how he conducted a
census and law-and-order in Laiagam, Enga province (then part of Western Highlands) in 1959.
Indeed food for thought as I wondered what has
gone wrong and why national statistical office staff had conducted the cardinal
sin of not conducting a census in its scheduled year: something that had never
been done before.
“Most of my time while at Laiagam was spent in
patrolling,” he remembers.
Haus kuk (cook house) for a patrol in Laiagam in 1959
“My initial job was to go around the valley
recording names in village, clan and lineage groups.
“Recorded some 65,000 names in the LagaipValley.
Getting a log for a bridge in Laiagam, then part of Western Highlands, in 1959
“Every day was also a court day.
“Court day often meant just that, but often it
was more of a mediation process.
A typical camp site in the Highlands
“If a dispute could be settled amicably by
paying pigs or shell than that was the chosen way to do it.
“Prison terms were often given that but that was
mainly for assaults or garden theft or rioting and fighting.
“There was no paid labour on the government
station and all upkeep was done by the prisoners.
“They had no complaints.
“They were houses and fed and generally happy
for their period in gaol.
“They knew they had done something wrong and
accepted it.
“The only escapes were when someone heard that
his wife was playing up or a child was sick or his pig had been killed.
“But application to the POIC (patrol officer in
charge) was often given a sympathetic hearing and he was allowed out in the
custody of his village leader or luluai.
“The capacity of the prison was space limited to
about 30 occupants.
“On one occasion, there was a tribal fight in
which two major clans were involved and some 400 warriors were sentenced by me
to a gaol term.
“It was impossible for me to accommodate them,
so after discussions with the two luluais involved it was agreed that each clan
would work on the section of the road through their tribal areas for the term
of their gaol sentence.
“They would sleep in their own houses and their
wives/mothers would bring food to where they were working.
“A daily roll call, to ensure attendance, would
be held.
“It worked very well and everybody benefitted with
the road work that was completed during the two-month period.
“They knew that they had done wrong and accepted
the punishment, but were happy to have the trust-like system which allowed them
to sleep in their warm houses as opposed to the prison where their only warmth
would come from a blanket or two.
“In 1969, 10 years later when I returned to the
area, several of them pointed out with pride the work they had done on the
road.
“This was no resentment.”
Pople first arrived in Mt Hagen, Western
Highlands, in 1959 and served places such as Jimi, Tambul, Tomba, Wabag,
Laiagam, Porgera, Mt Kare, Koroba (Southern Highlands), Kandep, Minj and Banz.
“At this time,” he recalls, “Mt Hagen was
growing rapidly but shopping was rudimentary to say the least.
“Danny Leahy has a small store not far from
where we lived and there were a couple of other small stores on our side of
town.
“On the other side, where the people lived,
there were better stores, and if memory serves me well, they were New Guinea
Company, Steamships and Burns Philp.
“Hagen was a centre for coffee-growing which was growing
rapidly at that time in the Highlands.
“In later years, that spread to tea-growing but
that had not yet started when I first arrived there.”
Tambul, at 7,300ft and the highest station in
the Territory of New Guinea at that stage, had an
airstrip that was capable of taking DC3 and similar larger aircraft.
Wabag airstrip was at 6,700ft above sea level
and built on a sloping ridge with an approach up the valley, a lift on to the
end of the airstrip and then full-throttle to climb to the parking bay.
Whilst Pople was at Laiagam, there was always
talk of gold at Progera, but he had resolved to stay out of anything to do with
Porgera gold and, though offered gold on many occasions, never bought any.
In 1960, Pople was posted to Minj, “which had
only been opened in 1957, when Barry Griffin had been sent to pacify the
warring locals and open a station”.
“They were an offshoot of the middle Wahgi
people and had close affiliations with the people from North
Wahgi area.
“There were about 25,000 of them living in the
headwaters of the middle Jimi and about another 500 scattered through a large
area in the lower Jimi.
“Mt Wilhelm was part of the watershed of the
Jimi and the valley dropped down to about 4,500ft near the station to under
1,000ft in the sparsely-populated lower Jimi.
“They were still fighting and there were two
mission stations operating.
“One was the Catholic Mission at the foot of Mt
Wilhelm at the head of the JimiRiver and the other was operated by the Anglican
Mission on the north side of the JimiRiver.”
Minj and Banz in the great WahgiValley
were also two other places which Pople resided in and remain close to his heart
after almost a half-century.
I’ll leave the last word about him camping one
time at Karepuga in Mt Kare in 1959, which some 29 years later, in 1988, would
be the scene of PNG’s biggest-ever gold rush.
“We camped in grassland but at the edge of light
bush at an altitude of 9,500ft.
“The bush provided some relief from the winds
and we all had a better sleep.
“This camp was just to the north of Pinuni creek
and only a kilometre away from the area which was to provide the source of the
biggest gold rush in PNG history some 29 years later.
A VOTE of no-confidence in Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare is imminent, Western Governor Dr Bob Danaya warned last night, The National reports.
But timing is crucial, as anyone wanting to remove the prime minister has only six months, between now and Dec 31, to do so. The Constitution does not allow any vote of no-confidence in a prime minister 18 months before the next general elections.
PNG will go to the polls in a general election in July or August 2012.
“The game is on now. The opposition will move a vote of no-confidence, but I do not know what strategy they will use,” Danaya said.
A legal source told The National anyone wanting to move a vote must give seven days notice first when Parliament is sitting. At present, there is no notice of a vote of no-confidence before Parliament, so one would have to be introduced on July 20 when Parliament next sits, or in November when it sits for the budget.
“Time may be on their (government) side.
“There is only six months, and they could juggle the number of sitting days remaining to suit themselves. That will happen unless factions within government block it,” the legal source said.
Just 24 hours after the Supreme Court struck down provisions of the Integrity Law (OLIPPAC), talks were swirling in Waigani of secret meetings by different factions within the government, and the ruling National Alliance party, but no one was coming out to confirm or deny anything.
A number of party leaders contacted by The National refused to comment
publicly on how they see the decision of the top court, its implications
and what they might do.
But leader of the Melanesian Liberal Party Dr Allan Marat, who was recently sacked as attorney-general, was forthright about his view of the government.
He said if there was a move to change the government, he would fully support those who make such a move.
“I will support the change of government because I have seen the current government’s trend towards dictatorship; the greed of leaders and, when I spoke openly about it, I got kicked out as you all know.
“I was, then, speaking about leadership; the OLIPPAC provisions that have been found to be ‘unconstitutional’ were encouraging the ‘stability in government that saw the end in itself’.
“The deliverance of transparency and good governance were not there. I spoke up against it, and I was sacked.
“So, I will support the move for changes in government.”
Marat’s MLP is a coalition partner in the current government. Under OLIPPAC, he would not have voted against the prime minister he helped put in after the elections.
But, that has changed now with the court decision on Wednesday.
MPs are no longer bound by their party resolutions, and parties are no longer bound by their votes after the general election.
Southern Highlands Governor Anderson Agiru, an avid supporter of the prime minister, is confident Sir Michael will see out his final term on top, but urged him to change “non-performing” ministers.
“Now is the time to demonstrate real leadership. Now is the time to take stock of who had turned up for work and who has been sleeping.
“If ministers have not been performing, they must go. Quality leaders sitting in the backbench of government, and in the opposition, should be given an opportunity if they put their hand up,” Agiru said.
He said the highlands region had been given a raw deal in the past, and the government must now shift its focus and resources to important infrastructure like the Highlands Highway.
Works, Transport and Civil Aviation Minister Don Polye, who is deputy leader of NA, said stability had brought investment and opportunities to the country never seen before, and must continue.
“We respect the decision of the court.
“OLIPPAC is out but, as leaders, we should not lean too much on the law to provide a stable environment for growth.
“As leaders, we should provide this in the way we behave and conduct ourselves. If we serve our constituents with honesty, stability will prevail without the need for such laws.”
Polye has 11 men in his highlands faction of NA, giving him pole position to take over leadership of the party when Sir Michael steps down.
The prime minister has kept the cards up his sleeve, and could play them now to beat any vote.
Parliament recently gave him approval to increase Cabinet from 28 to 32. He could play that to appease resentments.
He could also give away “economic” portfolios perceived to be concentrated in one region.
WEDNESDAY’S Supreme Court decision on the Organic Law on the Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates (OLIPPAC) was hailed by its referrer, Dr Bob Danaya, as “justice being done at last” for the people of PNG, The National reports.
Danaya and counsel Loani Henao, however, said the decision had left a “dent” in the OLIPPAC.
Henao said: “The major parts of the OLIPPAC that we challenged in court have been declared unconstitutional, but the rest remained intact.
“The question of whether what remains of the OLIPPAC would hold the law together is something for Parliament and the registrar of political parties to consider,” he told reporters after the court decision.
“In our view, the OLIPPAC had been severely dented. And, so, necessary amendments are needed to put together a complete OLIPPAC.”
Henao said while the intention of the OLIPPAC was to bring stability to government, such should not happen “at the expense of freedom of choice, freedom of expression and freedom of exercising conscience”.
“Do it properly; you can still do it within the framework of the Constitution.
“Do not abuse and do not take away the rights of the people which are expressed by their representatives.”
Thanking his legal team for convincing the Supreme Court to rule in their favour, Danaya said: “I can tell Members of Parliament that from this hour on, you are free to resign from a political party – if you wish to – and join another party or form another party.
“MPs now have that freedom; and, the important thing is, from here onwards, we must ensure there is good governance in Parliament and throughout PNG.”
Henao said the fears of a dictatorship were gone.
“That has been removed.
“True democracy has returned.
“The Supreme Court decision was very important. It was, hopefully, a lesson to the legislators that the enshrined freedoms in the Constitution must not be tempered or interfered with.
“These freedoms are put there so that they will allow the constituencies and the grassroots people of this country to exercise their freedom of choice and their freedom of expressions through their elected MPs.
“That should never, ever have been taken away in the first place.”
CHURCHES will be provided funding from the Australian government to continue to provide health and education services in Papua New Guinea, The National reports.
The churches play a very crucial role in delivering these services in the rural areas of PNG. They are present in areas where often the government, at provincial and national level, does not penetrate into. Over time, this has meant that people have grown to trust the church more than the government in delivering these services.
During the Australia-PNG bilateral meeting in Alotau this week, the role of churches in delivering a better outcome for the Australian aid programme was discussed.
Australian foreign minister Stephen Smith announced that, consistent with the review recommendations that the aid programme deliver better outcomes, Australia would support a PNG church partnerships programme.
This would comprise A$50 million over five years starting this year.
The programme would also help Australian churches work with their PNG counterparts to implement health, education and community development activities.
The PNG delegation welcomed this initiative.
This was one of a number of outcomes agreed upon at the conclusion of the meeting in Alotau yesterday.
It was also agreed during the meeting that the PNG liquefied natural gas (LNG) project represented a significant opportunity for PNG to transform the economy, and ministers noted the progress on the design of the sovereign wealth funds, which the Australian government is helping to set up.
The ministers agreed that Australia’s current level of overseas development assistance to PNG would not be affected by any commitments to assist with the implementation of the LNG project.
The ministers also agreed that the PNG LNG project was a schedule-driven project to meet commercial obligations and the timely delivery of this project would auger well for future investments in PNG.
The commercial obligations were mainly from bankers who had provided funding for the project, and wanted to see an outcome at the scheduled time.
The US$17 billion project has started with infrastructure development at project sites, and the first LNG cargo is expected to leave PNG shores in late 2013 or early 2014.
The Papua New Guinea Rugby League administration must now get its act together to sort out the legal impasse or forget about PNG's participation in the forthcoming four nation rugby league tournament this October.
Time may be running out for the PNG Kumuls and PNG must also be concerned for several reasons.
While we stuff around, the Australian and New Zealand organisers of this important meet are also watching, and wondering whether PNG will be ready for this planned tournament.
We should not let the threat of resignation by Kumul coach Adrian Lam force us to come to a compromised decision that will destroy the integrity and long-term sustainability of rugby league in this country.
Let the rugby league administration now decide what is good for the development of rugby league in PNG.
What we decide now must be long in vision and mission, whether we are preparing for the four nations meet four months from now or the Australian NRL Bid proposal.
There is an urgent need for the Kumuls to must start preparing now or PNG may not be sufficiently prepared for this year's four nation tournament.
Adrian Lam is the best Kumuls' coach so far, and it will be a shame if he was to step down as the Kumul's coach.
Lam values his professional credibility more than the silly games the league administration is currently embroiled in at this moment.
The PNG Rugby League Administration's lack of clear direction has now prompted Sports Minister Philemon Embel to personally take matters into his own hand to try to resolve the legal impasse (which will no doubt drag on for some time, and time is what we cannot afford right now).
The Sports Minister must be commended for his foresight and quick action here.
It's somewhat surprising to see the Sports Federation not taking a more-proactive action here to directly address the situation early until the resignation threat by Adrian Lam as recently reported in the media.
Last Saturday's meeting at Port Moresby's CrownPlaza hotel organised by the Sports Minister for all rugby league stakeholders to meet and resolve the present impasse has a temporary but a positive outcome.
The meeting decided to have a caretaker rugby league administration in place until the court decides who the rightful rugby league board is.
This is a positive start.
What are really needed now are a good strong leadership and management within the PNG Rugby League administration to take the rugby league code forward into the future.
We must do this without any undue political and external interference to make decisions that will only compromise the growth and sustainability of this popular sporting code in PNG.
Reginald Renagi
*Former President, Defence Force Rugby League and Union
