K9 million worth of projects grind to a halt in Bulolo

By MALUM NALU

Bulolo MP and Deputy Opposition Leader Sam Basil says projects totaling up to K9 million in his electorate had come to a standstill because the government has still not released his electorate’s district support improvement programme (DSIP) funds for 2013.

 “Everything,” he said.

“K9 million worth of projects has stopped.”

The projects which have grinded to a halt include  rural policing, road maintenance, foot bridges, honey,  rural electrification, Garaina road K5 million, support vehicles for each LLG, mobile health, Leklu Bridge and Latu bridges, Balob Teachers College corporate sponsorship for next year, road from Wagau to Bumatu in Labu, eye operations for people in all LLGs, Bulolo Technical College sponsorship, livestock, sponsorship of training for Wau Mining School,  fuel for machinery, foot bridges, Buang hydro power,  drugs and various others.

Basil said he had only received K1 million this year, K2 million was still to be cleared, and K7 million was outstanding.

Last Friday, backed by a rowdy crowd of supporters, Basil fired a broadside at Finance Secretary Dr Ken Nangan at Vulupindi Haus,

“You are the Secretary of Department of Finance,” he told Nangan,

“Bulolo is one of the 89 districts, which has two mines that pay taxes to the government.

“Bulolo has people who are into alluvial mining, coffee, is home to PNG Forest Products and Zenag Chicken.

“We play a big role in the development of PNG, unlike many other districts, in terms of our taxes.

“The government last year passed the Appropriation Act, which says that all 89 districts of PNG will receive K89 million.

“From January up till December, Bulolo district has received K1 million and I got another K2 million, which is yet to be cleared.

“Practically, we have K9 million yet to be received.”

Basil said legal action was being sought for immediate release of outstanding funds with orders that Finance Minister James Marape pay all costs.

“We are taking court action,” he said.

“Our lawyer will take out a court order before Dec 31 to James Marape and his Secretary.

“We won’t stop there.

“As soon as the order is released, we will go further.

“Damage has been done: 12 months no projects.

“We will seek further orders that no more DSIPs be paid out in cheques and all payments must be paid out electronically at the same time.

“Payments must be made quarterly.

“We will seek a court order in that regards and we will pass on all legal costs to James Marape, not the Independent State of Papua New Guinea.

“The minister himself misused his powers in terms of delaying and instructing his Finance Secretary to delay the payments.

“We will ensure that he pays the full legal costs that the opposition will pick up.”

Basil demands release of Bulolo district funds

By MALUM NALU

 Bulolo MP and Deputy Opposition Leader Sam Bail last Friday led a small but vocal group of supporters to Vulupindi Haus demanding the immediate release of his people’s district support improvement programme (DSIP) funds for 2013.

In heated scenes outside the building Basil, backed by Huon Gulf MP Ross Seymour and rowdy supporters, accused Finance Secretary Dr Ken Nangan of telling blatant lies and denying the people of Bulolo what was rightfully theirs.

Basil addressing Nangan as Seymour (centre) and supporters look on.

Basil made the outburst after Nangan said not all government MPs had received their K10 million, which he said was not true, as all government MPs had received their K10 million.

Bulolo and Huon Gulf have not yet received K7 million out of the K10 million, which Basil said was by virtue of him and Ross being in opposition, and gave a deadline of Dec 31 to pay up or he would up on again on Jan 10, 2014, with even more supporters.

“Many government MPs have not got their K10 million yet,” Nangan said.

“What I’m told is that, eventually, all the money will be paid out to the districts.

“I can assure everyone that I will make sure that every MP gets their K10 million, but again, I’m subject to the government of the day.

“I can assure you that this will be before close of financial year.

“I’ll make it my business to deliver the K10 million.”

Basil, however, didn’t accept Nangan’s remarks.

“This is wrong,” he said.

“This money belongs to all the districts.

“I have friends on the government side.

“They showed me their K10 million cheques.

“Secretary, you are telling lies to me and the Huon Gulf MP.

“Cheques were written out and they have been paid K10 million already.

“You are telling lies by saying that government MPs have not received the K10 million.

“Mr Secretary, you are lying to an MP.

“I want you to go and get the cheque from (Finance Minister) James Marape.

“I want the cheque, Mr Secretary, now.

“This money belongs to Bulolo district.

“Why, Mr Secretary, are you treating MPs like plantation labourers?

“These funds are supposed to go out to every district through electronic transfer and divided into four quarterly payments: K2.5 million first quarter, K2.5 million second quarter, K2.5 million third quarter, K2.5 million fourth quarter.

“To date, government MPs have received K10 million, while we opposition MPs have received K3 million.

“There are only six MPs in opposition, we are no threat to government, and we should not be punished further.

“Mr Secretary, I’m giving you until Dec 31, and if I receive nothing by then, you will see my face again here with a crowd 100 times bigger.

“We will not care if the police arrest us, we will come here and demand for what is rightfully ours.”

The write stuff

A group of enthusiastic toddlers graduated in reading last Friday at Waigani Christian School in Port Moresby.

The 100-plus toddlers, aged four, five and six, are kindergarten students who underwent a reading readiness class to prepare them for higher grades.

Some of the toddlers who graduated last Friday.

“Reading is the key to everything,” said school founder Benjamin Mul.

“Reading is the key to knowledge and information.

“When a child reads, and he or she goes to school, it will be easy for him or her to understand.

“But if a child doesn’t read, when he or she goes to school, he or she will be confused.

“We have reading readiness classes, which prepare toddlers, aged four, five or six to read before they go up higher.”

PNG-Taiwan Alumni Association formed

A PNG –Taiwan Alumni Association has been formed to strengthen relationships between the two countries.

It is made up of Papua New Guineans who have been recipients of training in Taiwan over the years.

Uvenama Rova of the United Church has been elected as president while Janet Kaule of the National Development Bank has been elected as vice-president.

Rova, Hu and Kaule with other association members at the first meeting last Friday.

Taiwan Trade Mission representative Daniel Hu said at the first meeting last Friday that the association would help Taiwan as a growing development partner for PNG.

“Taiwan is a donor country to PNG,” he said.

“But we are different from other donors, we don’t do what we want to do, we want to do something that is needed in this country.

“So we need your input to identify those projects of mutual interest.

“That’s why I’m very happy to see that this association is formed today.

“I hope in future we can have regular meetings, formal or informal, so if you have any ideas you’re always welcome in my office.

“You represent different sectors of PNG.

“For us, we only have three people from Taiwan, so it’s hard to cover all the needs of PNG.”

Further 12 Australian Federal Police officers to arrive in PNG on Monday

A further 12 Australian Federal Police (AFP) officers  will arrive in Papua New Guinea on Monday December 9 to work alongside their counterparts to boost community policing operations in Port Moresby and Lae.

Their arrival will increase the number of AFP officers working as part of the PNG-Australia Policing Partnership to 59.

Commissioner of the Royal PNG Constabulary Toami Kulunga welcomed the news of the arrival of the additional AFP officers, saying the partnership of between the RPNGC and the AFP has been going from strength to strength.

He said many Papua New Guineans including the rank and file of the RPNGC have expressed support for the program thus far.

Head of the AFP contingent Assistant Commissioner Alan Scott, "The goal of our enhanced mission is, in partnership with the RPNGC, to continue to develop the capacity of the RPNGC to provide sustainable and quality policing to the people of PNG." 

Assistant Commissioner Scott said that the 30 AFP officers who arrived in November have been working very closely with their RPNGC colleagues.

"AFP officers have been out with local police in a number of locations across Port Moresby in the last few weeks and the feedback I have received have been very positive," Assistant Commissioner Scott said.

The deployment will see an additional 50 AFP officers in PNG by the end of this year. The AFP officers do not have policing powers in PNG, but provide advice, guidance and assistance for a range of day to day policing matters.

Specific areas which will be supported include community policing, station management and supervision, community liaison, traffic operations, criminal investigations and dealing with sexual offences.

InterOil stock collapses after agreeing to PNG gas-stake sale

Joe Carroll and James Paton

Bloomberg

 InterOil Corp. lost more than a third of its market value after agreeing to sell Total SA a majority stake in its Papua New Guinea natural gas discoveries for a price that won’t be known for at least a year.

The shares tumbled 37 percent to $55.50 at the close in New York on Saturday, the biggest decline since 2002.

InterOil will divest to Total a 61.3 percent stake in an exploration license in the South Pacific nation that includes the Elk and Antelope gas fields. The French oil producer also will acquire rights to invest in additional exploration blocks and to develop a liquefied gas export terminal, InterOil said in a statement.

InterOil priced the deal at $1.5 billion to $3.6 billion, though it won’t receive a definitive price until at least 2015, Pavel Molchanov, an analyst at Raymond James & Associates Inc., said in a note to clients on Saturday. “There are some elements of uncertainty/ambiguity,” still to be resolved, he said.

InterOil, which has no reserves after more than 10 years of prospecting, has been searching for a major international partner to help fund a gas-export complex since Bank of America Corp.’s Merril Lynch quit the project in 2009. InterOil said in May that it was in discussions with Exxon Mobil Corp., which is already building its own $19 billion gas terminal in the country.

LNG Decision

Total will operate the proposed LNG project, which will depend on the gas resources being certified and engineering and design work, the Paris-based company said in a statement on Saturday. InterOil said it will keep 30 percent of an LNG development.

A final investment decision to develop the fields and build an onshore liquefaction plant on the Gulf of Papua may come in 2016, it said. Total also has an option to take an interest in three other exploration licenses in the area. This comes in addition to the stakes in other offshore and onshore permits it already holds.

The planned LNG development would follow Exxon’s venture in Papua New Guinea, which is proceeding along with seven others in Australia that are estimated to cost about $180 billion. Exxon said earlier this year that it was interested in InterOil’s assets to help expand its LNG project.

Total reached a deal last year with Port Moresby-based Oil Search, which owns a 29 percent stake in the Exxon project, to explore for gas in PNG, while Royal Dutch Shell Plc said in 2011 it would look at opportunities in the country.

Gas Discovery

Elk-Antelope is one of the largest discoveries in Asia in the past two decades, InterOil Chief Executive Officer Michael Hession said in the statement. Phil Mulacek, who founded the Papua New Guinea exploration company, retired as CEO in April.

“PNG has very substantial gas resources, and this brings in a world-class LNG operator,” Tony Regan, a Singapore-based energy consultant at Tri-Zen International Inc., said today in a phone interview. “This deal will give people confidence that these reserves can now be monetized as LNG.”

Mulacek founded InterOil in the 1990s when he disassembled an Alaskan oil refinery, refurbished it in Texas and shipped it to Papua New Guinea. The refinery gave Mulacek a foothold to acquire exploration rights in the Eastern Papuan Basin.

Payments to InterOil include $613 million on the completion of the transaction, expected in the first quarter of 2014, and $112 million after a final investment decision for a new LNG plant, InterOil said. Total will pay a further $100 million after the first LNG cargo, InterOil said. Variable payments will depend on the size of the resources, estimated at 5.4 trillion to 9 trillion cubic feet of gas it said.

InterOil was advised by Credit Suisse Group AG. In its separate statement, Total said it will pay $470 million for a 42 percent interest in the PNG gas fields. The French company noted that the size of its stake may drop from 61.3 percent should a “strategic partner” acquire up to 19.3 percent interest and even further to 32.5 percent should the government join the project.

Total would pay an additional contingent payment of “approximately” $590 million, it said.