BSP hikes service fees, introduces new ones

By PATRICK TALU

 

BANK South Pacific customers are to pay new and additional fees for kundu saver account, smart saver account, personal cheque account and ordinary business cheque account, The National reports.

BPS, in an unofficial circulation of the notice of fees to be effective on Monday, will see customers pay extra and new fees for previously free services.

The notice said for kundu savings account, K3 monthly fee would be charged for dormant accounts, teller service fee for deposit and teller service fee for EFTPos, while K4 would be charged for every withdrawal.

For the automatic teller machine (ATM) services, 50 toea will be charged for ATM balance enquiry; 75 toea for ATM withdrawal, ATM phone top up and ATM funds transfer-withdraw.

The bank will also charge K15 for ATM withdrawal using visa card and K1.50 for ATM balance enquiry for visa card.

Fees for other services with kundu account range between 50 toea and K3.

For smart saver account, the monthly and dormancy fees are K2, while teller service-deposits is K3; deposit-withdrawal is K4.

Other services range from 60 toea, with K50 as the highest penalty fee for early withdrawal outside December and January in any year.

Asked for reasons behind the new fees, the BSP management in an email said: “As part of BSP’s commitment to improve and enhance the quality and quantity of banking services to the majority of Papua New Guineans and recover the true costs of providing banking services, it will increase its fees effective  on Monday, Nov 1, 2010.

“BSP advises that all branch staff and branch managers throughout its 36 branch network will be more than happy to provide information on the increase and also advise customers on how to reduce the costs of banking through products and channels available such as SMS banking, ATM and EFTPOS.  

“BSP remains committed to enhancing the quality and quantity of banking services nationwide.”

 

 

K10m given to redeploy police at three LNG sites

By ANGELINE KARIUS

 

A 30-STRONG police squad will be redeployed at three LNG project construction sites today to ensure work continues on schedule, The National reports.

The national executive council met in an emergency session yesterday afternoon and approved the immediate release of K10 million for security operations.

Police Commissioner Gari Baki said last night that police from Port Moresby would be sent at first light to Gobe in Southern Highlands and Gulf’s Kikori and Kopi where construction of facilities were underway for the laying of the pipeline from the gas fields to the coast to Port Moresby.

The police redeployment was to quash fears among investors, especially developer ExxonMobil and its construction contractor Clough Curtain Brothers Joint Venture (CCBJV), of growing landowner opposition over employment opportunities, working conditions and outstanding land pay issues.

Infrastructure activities at Gobe, Kikori and Kopi included camp construction and site clearing, wharf and laydown at Kopi and bridge and road works on northern and southern logistics routes.

Baki said he gave a briefing on the security situation to the NEC which was chaired by Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare, who had flown in from Cairns, and attended by Internal Affairs Minister Sani Rambi, who had also flown in from Brisbane, Finance Minister Peter O’Neill, Arthur Somare (Public Enterprises) and Paul Tiensten (National Planning).

The meeting was called about 4pm amid growing concerns that investors were seriously considering their options in the multi-billion-kina project, which was scheduled to begin production in three years.

The construction phase had been targeted by the burning of equipment belonging to CCBJV at Kopi, strike at Komo airfield construction site and last Friday’s stop-work by 108 employers at two pipeline sites.

Baki said police personnel from the Port Moresby-based task force division would be deployed for an indefinite period.

Police had withdrawn from selected sites during the year because of lack of funds.

Rambi confirmed Baki’s statement, adding that the K10 million would be drawn from the K101 million set aside last month for special police operations, including resource areas.

He said police presence was to restore law and order and, secondly, to instill public confidence in the project, especially among the expatriate workers.

The NEC intervention yesterday was forced by events of the past week when villagers stopped early construction work on pipeline from Kopi to Kaiam and Mubi crossing.

The villagers, many of whom were employed by CCBJV, had petitioned the prime minister to address their grievances such as poor salary and bonuses, among others.

So far, ExxonMobil had not commented on the strike.

 

 

G4S drivers protest pay and conditions

By SAMUEL RAITANO

 

DRIVERS of international security service company, G4S, protested yesterday over what they claim was low pay, unpaid allowances and other entitlements, The National reports.

There was a commotion at the Pacific Corps car park in downtown Port Moresby when disgruntled drivers smashed cartons of tinned fish and biscuits meant to be their lunch.

They are engaged with G4S as drivers for both nationals and expatriates working in the PNG LNG project.

The drivers questioned their pay and demanded answers from G4S administration.

A driver, who requested anonymity, said: “We work as security guards and drivers, yet our pay does not show we are working for a multi-billion dollar LNG project.

“Hau na ol security long Tari kisim moa lo mipla? Mipla wokman blo LNG tu (How is it that guards at Tari get more than us? We are LNG workers too).”

It was observed that the guards wanted to speak out on the matter but feared repercussions and decided to remain tightlipped when approached by reporters to speak.

At one instance, some guards got so worked up that they threatened to remove their uniforms and walk off.

The National was told to stay outside the fence of the premises, with G4S staff saying it was a “minor issue” and a consensus was being worked out with no need for publicity.

After some convincing, the striking workers gathered the remains of their scattered lunch and peacefully resumed work.

G4S fleet manager Brendan Bakani, when contacted, said he was not aware of the incident.

He later said a meeting had been held by concerned stakeholders in the morning.

Esso Highlands Ltd’s government and corporate affairs manager Miles Shaw, when contacted, said ExxonMobil operation was not affected.

Shaw said it was a matter between G4S and its drivers.

He also said ExxonMobil had a contract agreement with G4S to provide drivers for its operation, and nothing was affected yesterday.

 

 

Western villagers angry over alleged land-grab

VILLAGERS in Western are angry their government has allocated more than a million hectares of pristine forest for “special agricultural leases” – which they describe as a land-grab for logging, The National reports.

At a landowner meeting in Kiunga this week, hundreds of disgruntled villagers said their land had been given away without any informed consent or notification.

Western now has half of PNG’s allocated 4.3 million hectares of “special purpose agricultural and business leases”, after the government gazetted Tosigiba Timber group and North East Timber 1.25 million hectares on Sept 23.

Last year, the government allocated 853,420ha to companies in the province for special leases in areas such as the contentious Kamula Doso forest that had a court order preventing any forestry activity.

The build-up of “special leases” had enraged green groups, NGOs and numerous government officials to raise their concerns that PNG’s forests were under threat by oil palm or “logging by stealth”.

North Fly MP Boka Kondra, who addressed the landowners on Wednesday, said it was a grave concern.

“They are giving away the land but we do not know what the future is or the implications,” he said.

“It is a surprise to see this, I will talk to the ministers concerned to find a possible solution because a lot of people on their land will see this as taking it away.”

Western Province Land and Resource Owner Federation chairman, Paul Katut said landowners had been duped.

“It is unprecedented the government gives one million hectares,” he said.

“We have members of the companies here that all say they did not agree to the deal.”

The Lands Department grants the “special leases” to companies to develop, for example, oil palm plantations but, in the past, unscrupulous players had used the leases to bypass laws and cut down the forest, export the logs and then leave.

Greenpeace forest and climate campaigner Paul Winn said increasing special leases was another example of PNG’s disregard for its purported climate change policy and indigenous people’s rights.

“These leases will never result in agricultural benefits to PNG. They are just a way of sidestepping the logging laws,” he said.

Agriculture Minister John Hickey and the Lands Department could not be contacted for comments. – AAP

Provincial pollies fed up with Waigani red tape

By MALUM NALU

Two former provincial politicians who have been wandering the corridors of Waigani awaiting their outstanding entitlements are demanding answers.

Former Morobe provincial speaker Isaac Narol and his Madang counterpart Tonny Sauba say they have been going to Waigani day-in, day-out, only to find evasive public servants.

They are now calling on acting chief secretary and secretary for provincial affairs and inter-government relations, Manasupe Zurenuoc, to come clean on this as the payout decision was made at cabinet level.

“The national government appropriated K30 million to settle outstanding entitlements for former provincial assembly members, whose term of office was terminated as a result of the reforms in the previous provincial government system in 1995,” Narol said.

“We were assured by Zurenuoc that our payments would be ready in July or the second week of September.

“To date, there are no signs of cheques being printed, and there is confusion within the Department of Provincial Affairs as to when the payment will be forthcoming.”

Narol said lawyer Emmanuel Bearion was responsible for organising payments, however, seemed to be deliberately avoiding frustrated former provincial politicians by staying out of his office.

“The inability of the Department of Provincial Affairs to release payment of K39m from the 2010 national budget is one good example of public servants not serving the interests of the executive government,” he said.

“I call on Zurenuoc to sack the officers responsible.

“If this is not done, then he himself should resign and to save face because his actions speak loud and clear of his bad leadership.

“The Prime Minister, through cabinet and the minister responsible for provincial affairs, must all the responsible officials for disobeying lawful orders of the executive government of the day.”

 

MMJV admits "high" sediment in Watut River

By MALUM NALU

One of the joint venture partners in the just-commissioned Hidden Valley gold mine in Morobe province has admitted that there are “higher-than-expected” sediment levels in the Watut River.

South African company Harmony Gold Mining, through its chief executive officer Graham Briggs, made the announcement in a letter to stakeholders – published on its website (http://www.harmony.co.za/sd/message.asp) – on Tuesday this week.

Harmony CEO Graham Briggs

Briggs admitted that this was causing “serious concern within and outside the company” and a change in the course of a section of the lower Watut River, resulting in die-back of vegetation.

The admission came about as Morobe Mining Joint Ventures, made up of Harmony and Australian partner Newcrest, started paying compensation to affected villagers along the Watut River and as Bulolo MP Sam Basil called on villagers not to accept the payouts.

“The higher-than-expected sediment impacts in the Watut River in PNG have given rise to serious concern within and outside the company,” Briggs said.

“The mine’s environmental impact statement (EIS) predicted sediment loads in the Watut River during construction but, as it has taken longer than expected to reach hard rock at the mine which will be used to construct the interim waste dumps, the construction of stable waste dumps has been delayed resulting in a continued high sediment load in the Watut River.

“Construction of the interim waste dumps has been prioritised, with specific resources allocated to the project to ensure speedy progress.

“This will reduce the sediment load in the river, and allow the current sedimentation to flush out.

“In addition, mining activities which contributed to the increased sediment load have been stopped.

“The MMJV commissioned further impact assessments so that we could better understand the impact of these sediment loads on the river.

“These studies show that the increased sediment load in the Watut River (of which the mine is one source) has resulted in a change in the course of a section of the lower Watut River, and a die-back of vegetation in that area as a result of flooding.

“Although these changes in the river course occur naturally over time, the mine's contribution to the sediment load in the lower Watut River has speeded up this process.

“The MMJV has committed to expanding its monitoring programme to quantify the impacts coming from the mine and other sources, taking remedial action wherever possible, and working with the government to assess fair compensation for those affected.”

Hidden Valley mine was officially commissioned on Sept 29 by Governor General Sir Paulias Matane at a ceremony which also marked its opening.

The new gold project is a joint venture between South African miner Harmony Gold (70%) and Newcrest Mining Ltd (30%), the largest gold miner in Asia-Pacific.

MMJV plans to invest a total of K1.25 billion over a 10-year period, with the outlay to go towards wages and salaries (K800 million), royalty payments (K200m) and revenue for the provincial and national government (K250m).

The Hidden Valley mine is projected to produce an estimated 2.9 million ounces of gold.

Thousands turn up to receive Paul Pora

By JAMES APA GUMUNO

THOUSANDS of people turned up at the Kagamuga Airport in Mt Hagen, Western Highlands, to receive the casket containing the remains of former politician and businessman Paul Pora yesterday, The National reports.

The late Pora’s casket arrived on a chartered new Dash 8 aircraft, accompanied by parliamentary leader of the PNG National Party Joe Mek Teine, wives of the deceased and their children and other Hagen Central leaders.

People from Yamka and the neighbouring tribes in a mourning procession as they escorted the casket containing the remains of the late Paul Pora from the Kagamuga Airport to the Tega ceremonial grounds where thousands of mourners waited to receive the body. – Nationalpic by JAMES APA GUMUNO

The huge crowd outside the Air Niugini terminal was well-behaved, allowing other airlines to continue on with their operations.

After the Dash 8 landed, the casket of the late Pora was transferred onto an open-back Fifth Element vehicle and, escorted by police traffic and a bagpipes band, proceeded slowly from Kagamuga Airport all the way to his Tega village where thousands of mourners waited.

The Tega ceremonial ground was packed to capacity with the crowd stretching from the main arena out onto the road, allowing very little room for free movement as neighbouring tribes turned up in droves yesterday. More are expected today and tomorrow.

The late Pora will be laid to rest on Sunday at his village.

Former Kerowagi MP Waguwo Goiye said he had received news that PNG National Party supporters from Chimbu would arrive tomorrow for the funeral.

Other party followers and supporters from within the highlands were also expected tomorrow.

No Western Highlands MPs accompanied the casket when it left Port Moresby for Mt Hagen yesterday.