Digicel Stars enters semi-finals

By SAO HOIRE

The Digicel Stars singing competition is taking the country by storm and getting tougher as it winds down to the grand finale next month.

Digicel Stars elimination round two contestants awaiting the final judges word during the show’s live recording at POMCC last week

 With two elimination rounds already gone, everyone is in suspense as to who will win the title and walk away with the prize money of K10, 000 plus a recording contract.

The winner from elimination round two, Greg Aaron from rainy Lae, gave a hyped-up, mind-blowing performance as he belted out a country number from Keith Urban, Love Somebody during the live performance at Port Moresby Country Club (POMCC) last Wednesday.

The song got the audience roaring with excitement and even a guitarist up on stage in an impromptu performance which won the judges’ hearts to announce him the winner on the night.

Elimination round one winner, Joseph Normou, also from Lae was the judges’ choice with two viewers’ choice winners announced: Christopher Cobb who sang a number from Outfield and boy group Leo from Lae.

Viewers’ choice winners were submitted through SMS votes so keep voting for your favourite Digicel star to 1699.

For each round, only two successful contestants will be selected by the viewers to move forward.

“It has been a pleasure to watch and listen to all the wonderful singing and acting talent that is out there,” said Digicel PNG CEO John Mangos.

“Digicel Stars is now entering its final and most exciting stages and we are looking forward to even more talent being shown as the contestants will be pushed to show their very best performances.

“We give our best wishes to all the contestants as you are all winners to have made it this far in the competition.

The Digicel Stars semi-finals will be aired on EMTV on Sunday at 6.30pm with six contestants to compete for a place in the finals.

A total of 16 contestants made it through to the elimination rounds.

Dec 5 will see a showcase performance by the contestants with the grand finale to be on Dec 12.

So keep voting for your favourite star to the short code ‘1699’.

For example, vote for Hanley by texting ‘Hanley’ to 1699.

Hanley Logoso belting out his version of Guy Sebastian’s ‘Attention’ song that got the crowd roaring during the elimination

By voting, you can also win great prizes.

There will be K1, 000 free credits to be given away each week as well as 50 lucky SMS voters will win K50 free credits each.

Miss South Pacific Pageant 2010 at Lamana

This weekend will be a definite crowd pleaser at the party capital of PNG - the Gold Club -  beginning on Friday evening with the Miss South Pacific Pageant Talent Show and then on Saturday, the much-anticipated grand finale of the 2010 XOX PNG Idol.

The Miss South Pacific Talent Show on Friday will begin at 6pm and will showcase the 11 beauties in sarong wear.

The show is from 6pm-9pm so the Gold Club Arena and balconies will be closed off during this event unless you have tickets which are available from Lamana's reception for K60.

You can call Jacquie or Julie.

Patrons are advised however that the inside bar will operate as usual with free entry for members and K25 for non-members.

Once the Talent event is over, the Arena will be open for the usual Friday night outdoor party.

On Saturday evening, from the 40 auditioned singers 11 weeks ago, the top 10 remain and the concert of truth will reveal the best live entertainers and winners of the K10, 000.

This already looks like a brilliant show with finalists being Li Walter, Chaddy Ipah, Natalia Maino, Henry Gewang, Richard Wema, Samantha Clark, Nouna Regione, Emma Kamura, Gideon Singur and Matthew Jordan.

Who will reign supreme in the battle of vocals and showmanship?

Members free entry, non-members K25. Come on down to Lamana for a great night’s show!

 

Chinese PNG? I don't think so

From PAUL OATES

"PNG can become the China of the Pacific", the Minister for Planning and Monitoring and District Development, Paul Tiensten said recently at a dinner in Kokopo.
Yet exactly what was the Minister referring to?
"Past PNG governments had only looked at their survival," the Minister is quoted as saying.
He then made the point that PNG as a country must align itself with both the short and long term government strategies; "and that
this may well result in PNG becoming the China of the Pacific."
With a booming economy and aspirations of becoming the leading world power, China is an easy example to laud when so called developing countries wish to align and emulate their own development strategies.
But exactly what would it mean if PNG did adopt Chinese methods and strategies?
If one were to look beneath the rhetoric and hyperbole, might not this concept create some problems for Mr Tiensten's own government?
What methodologies for example, does the Chinese government use to curb
corruption?
Is Chinese culture readily able to be assimilated by the PNG people?
Do PNG people want to emulate the Chinese way of doing things?
Those with some experience of PNG culture and customs might well point out that a similar notion used to be bandied around some decades ago about PNG adopting western culture and ethics.
How successful was that concept in creating a society and government that eradicated corruption and enabled PNG to use its resources to build up a modern nation and allow its people to prosper?
It seems that the idea of 'further fields always being greener' hasn't changed in four decades.
Why not start looking at the mirror and working out what is going wrong at home rather than chasing the illusion of a rainbow
elsewhere?
______________________________ ___________________

Post Courier on line News
   Wednesday 24th November, 2010

'PNG is China of Pacific'

By MAUREEN SANTANA

PAPUA New Guinea can become the China of the Pacific, a minister said during the closing dinner of the MTDP and PNGDSP rollout in Kokopo recently.
Minister for Planning and Monitoring and District Development Paul Tiensten said: "The important thing as a country we must align with the government's plans."
The Minister said the two government initiatives have looked at all the perimeters and have planned accordingly and this may result in PNG becoming the China of the Pacific.
Mr Tiensten however said PNG must plan appropriately and it must be together with government's short and long term strategies.
He said it was important to look at the missing links and one area was the implementation framework.
He said the government commitment was there but it was up to each province to build the capacity within their districts and to implement the funds coming from the national government.
The minister said past governments had only looked at their political survival.
Mr Tiensten said however for the current Somare-Polye government the current plans were aligned to meet vision 2050 and the government was putting funds to encourage economic and development growth.
Mr Tiensten said there were talks among developers and other multi-national organisations that PNG was becoming the China of the Pacific.

Simon says: ‘Life begins at 40’

By MALUM NALU

Lae boy and longtime Papua New Guinea resident, Simon Merton, turned 40 last Saturday with big celebrations at his house at Korobosea in Port Moresby.

Simon Merton ready to blow out his 40 candles surrounded by wife Chairmaine, family and friends.-Pictures by MALUM NALU

 Family, friends and Hebou Construction workmates of Merton turned up at his birthday bash which started on Saturday afternoon and continued until Sunday.

 Guests included prominent commentator Reg Renagi, PNG Rugby Football League interim chairman Gary Juffa. Lae legend Terry Charles, pilot Sao Maliaki, former radio personality Uncle ET and many more.

 There was plenty of food, drink and a live band to keep everyone happy.

 Merton, the man-of-the-moment and an accomplished singer, took centre stage several times to wow party-goers.

 “I spent the last 40 years enjoying my life in PNG and am going to spend the next 40 doing my best to ensure our children get to enjoy their life in PNG,” he declares.

 “I love PNG and will do anything for my country.”

Yes … I am Santa!

 MISTER Ho Ho Ho dropped by yesterday to visit sick children at the Port Moresby General Hospital, The National reports.

Santa brought smiles as well gifts for all when he paid his annual visit from the North Pole, courtesy of the good staff of Coffey International, who helped in cash and kind.

After touring the hospital’s ward, Santa stopped by a bleary-eyed Sugui Eneri’s bed to hand over this special gift and all his special love for a speedy recovery.

“It brightens up their day,” duty officer Sister Maea Kauio said.

Santa and his Coffey International team rode off soon after, perhaps with Christmas tidings for other needy children in the city.

Coffey Global Quest started in 2000 in Adelaide, Australia, and is an initiative of the staff from Coffey International to help organisations in need of help.

15 foreign investment analysts visit LNG sites

A 15-man team of foreign investment analysts is  impressed with the oil operations at Oil Search Ltd and the activities at the PNG gas project sites, The National reports.

The team was in the country recently to have a first-hand look at the on-going gas and oil projects.

Later, they met with Public Enterprises Minister Arthur Somare.

OSL managing director Peter Botten and his team of executives hosted the team composed of fund managers, bankers and investors that included JB Morgan Securities, Norges Bank, JP Capital Partners, Macquarie Equities, Credit Suisse, JP Morgan Asset Management, BNP Baribas Securities, Macquarie Securities and Nomura Securities.

They were told in detailed briefings that in 2014, gas from the oil producing fields, which is currently being re-injected into the fields, will be recovered and fed into the PNG LNG pipeline as the first gas off-take for overseas markets.

This excited the analysts and raised a lot of questions regarding the development and expansion of the central processing facility in Kutubu to cater for the LNG project and a host of other financing issues.

They also visited the construction site of the Hides gas conditioning plant and the first of a number of Hides well-pads that will feed plant.

Former managing director of Mineral Resources Development Corp Francis Kaupa – a structural engineer, who heads the civil works, ground clearance and infrastructure – gave the visitors a thorough briefing on the early works.

They also flew over Komo and saw the huge airport construction underway. When completed, this airport will take the world’s largest aircraft, the Antonov.

Botten told the visitors that PNG, especially the Southern Highlands and the Gulf, was  attractive oil and gas provinces which raised the interests of a lot of potential investors

Most of the analysts were very pleased with what they saw and heard as they were driven through the heart of Hela region by road which allayed any fears they might have had about project security.

 

 

Budget passed

Shadow treasurer claims little achieved in last eight years

 

By ISAAC NICHOLAS

 

TREASURY and Finance Minister Peter O’Neill has declared 2011 as the “year of implementation” as parliament last night unanimously passed the record K9.3 billion money plan for next year, The National reports.

The budget, which had the support of almost all MPs from both sides of the house, was debated for six hours before being passed on voices.

The integrity law required parliament to vote on the budget along party lines, with parties submitting to the speaker a resolution of the decision of their caucus which way they would vote.

But, the government and the speaker decided that, since much of the integrity law was struck down by the Supreme Court, this voting requirement no longer applied.

O’Neill, who generally received warm reviews from parliament and the private sector on his first budget as treasurer, said implementation was a top priority if the government wanted to achieve targets and development goals and improve indicators.

“If we work within the budget framework, the targets set by the MTDP and the MDG will be achieved; the social and health indicators will improve.

“Public servants must roll up their sleeves and work with the private sector, with politicians leading from the front.”

O’Neill stressed that the monthly reviews of the budget he promised would be a crucial part of the government’s strategy in implementing the budget.

During debate, however, the budget took a hammering from shadow treasurer Bart Philemon.

Opposition leader Sir Mekere Morauta was overlooked by Speaker Jeffery Nape when he tried to present his comments of the budget, with Nape arguing that Sir Mekere had passed up his opportunity to speak by allowing Philemon to deliver the budget reply.

Sir Mekere left the chamber without speaking, and later released the text of his speech to the media.

Philemon said in his speech the government had achieved little despite eight years of stability and economic prosperity.

He said the government had spent K55 billion in eight years to achieve very little with corruption rising, the public service bloated and unproductive and eating K2 billion of the recurrent budget, and failure to broaden revenue base beyond mining and oil and gas sector.

Senior opposition MP and member for Abau Sir Puka Temu said the overall 2011 money plan was good news for the country.

He commended the treasurer and government for packaging a very good budget but the challenge was on implementation.

O’Neill said he was disappointed with the opposition’s reply, which lacked new initiative and substance.

“To tell you the truth, I am a bit disappointed given the experience in the opposition.

“We need constructive debate on the budget.

“I am happy that many people accepted the budget and the challenge is for us to implement on a timely basis,” O’Neill said outside parliament.