Keith Jackson & Friends: PNG ATTITUDE

5:00PM - O'Neill has just been sworn in as prime minister.

4:30PM - PNG still does not have a prime minister, although there are signs of some action at government house. Mr Nape has been meeting for some time with both Peter O'Neill and Belden Namah. What can they be discussing?

1:40pm - Now acting governor-general Jeffrey Nape refuses to swear in Peter O'Neill as prime minister and leaves the room. O'Neill tells Nape's official secretary the governor-general has no choice.

12:00pm - Peter O’Neill has been re-elected prime minister of Papua New Guinea 56-0. He was unopposed. Nou Vada, Tavurvur and the ABC’s Liam Fox have all been tweeting from parliament house. Nou got his message out first, seconds ahead of Tavurvur.

Namah says he'll nominate O’Neill to be PM

BY EOIN BLACKWELL
AAP

PETER O'NEILL HAS VOWED to stand again for Papua New Guinea's prime ministership tomorrow after the deputy speaker unexpectedly threw the position open.

And Belden Namah says he will not stand against him.

Deputy Speaker Francis Marus opened today’s special sitting of parliament saying the Supreme Court had declared Sir Michael Somare was the legitimate prime minister.

But he said Sir Michael, who was ousted as leader last August, couldn't serve in the position because he had been disqualified from parliament for missing three consecutive sittings.

Mr O'Neill challenged Sir Michael's supporters, many of whom have boycotted parliament, to turn up in numbers tomorrow and compete for the top job.

"Parliament has decided in its wisdom that we will recognise the court's decision today, and I acknowledge there is a vacancy in the office of prime minister," Mr O'Neill told reporters.

"I urge the Somare faction: let us end this once and for all.

"I urge him, take his faction to parliament so they can also have an opportunity to nominate a candidate."

Mr O'Neill's deputy, Belden Namah, said the government would nominate Mr O'Neill.

"Tomorrow will be fair game, fair play, like on the rugby field," he said.

"We shall put all questions on the prime ministership to rest.

"I will nominate Peter O'Neill to be the prime minister of this country," he said.

Namah: Feathers fly as the point man weighs in

BY HAMISH McDONALD
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

PAPUA NEW GUINEA HAS SEEN plenty of political wild men - like the late prime minister Bill Skate with his Albanian-Australian political adviser and connections to Port Moresby's raskol gangs. But has there been anything like Belden Namah, the present deputy prime minister?

This year alone he's made the headlines a lot. In March, the Herald reported he had been in Sydney's Star casino at 7am one day last year, drunk and propositioning the male croupier, with $800,000 to blow. Not him, Namah said.

On Thursday this week he turned up at the Supreme Court in Port Moresby at the head of a band of police, demanding the chief justice, Sir Salamo Injia, turn himself in to be charged with sedition. After a long stand-off, that seems to have happened.

Namah has been the point man in the government of the prime minister, Peter O'Neill, in its extended skirmishing with the country's highest court over the legality of the ousting in August of the independence leader Sir Michael Somare's government.

Twice, in December and again this week, benches of the court including Injia have ruled that the rules had not been followed to the letter and ordered that Sir Michael be reinstated. In December, O'Neill quickly got a big majority in the parliament to reaffirm his support.

The ailing Sir Michael has twice tried to meet the governor-general to get sworn back into office, but has been turned away at the gate by police following O'Neill's orders. In December, Sir Michael appointed his own police and military commanders, getting a small group of soldiers to come out for him, but the initiative soon faltered.

This week, Sir Michael also failed to get into Government House, while O'Neill struggled to get parliament recalled. But Namah decided to go for the judges, ordering Injia and the two others on the bench for the latest ruling to resign within 24 hours for alleged bias against the O'Neill government.

Before being charged, the chief justice appealed to police and military personal to abide by the court's ruling. Asking their chiefs to ''take your oath seriously and stand up for the constitution'', Injia said: ''This country is being run by men who are happy to use force rather than the rule of law.''

It is a nasty stand-off, and the only blessing is that writs have already been issued for a general election to start on 23 June. Within a couple of months, a new hand of political cards will be dealt and the Somare-O'Neill legal contest will be a matter of history.

But it will be a very tense time until the voting starts. Namah was also leader of the drive to postpone the elections for six months, in violation of the constitution's very explicit limits of leeway from the five-year parliament term.

O'Neill has managed to overrule him and election preparations are well under way. But PNG is always a land of surprises, good and bad.

Chief Justice Injia arrested in new political crisis

BY JAMES GRUBEL
REUTERS

POLICE IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA stormed the Supreme Court in Port Moresby yesterday afternoon and arrested the nation's top judge on sedition charges in response to the Court’s ruling that the prime minister held power illegally and should step down.

On the day nominations closed for June elections, police arrested Chief Justice Salamo Injia after the Court ruled former leader Michael Somare should be reinstated as prime minister.

Somare and prime minister Peter O'Neill have been jostling for power since August 2011, when O'Neill took office after Somare was ruled ineligible to be a lawmaker after a prolonged absence from parliament due to illness.

But the Supreme Court in December ruled Somare should be reinstated, and in another ruling this week the court said Somare should be the caretaker prime minister during the current election period.

O'Neill and his deputy, Belden Namah, have refused to accept the court ruling, accusing the judges of bias and demanding they resign, extending a prolonged feud with the judiciary.

Namah led armed police who arrived at the court as Injia started hearing a case, forcing the judge to run to his secure chambers where he remained holed up for several hours.

In a brief statement, he told reporters he would not be forced out of his job. "I've done nothing wrong. I will not resign," he said.

Injia was charged with sedition late on Thursday, and was released on bail. He was due to appear in court on Friday.

The dramatic development comes after months of political uncertainty in PNG.

O'Neill, who has the support of the majority of PNG's politicians, has attempted to recall parliament to deal with the latest court finding, but he has failed to muster a quorum three days in a row. Most lawmakers are in their electorates campaigning for the elections.

Somare, meanwhile, has written to PNG's media, warning they could be held in contempt if they do not recognize him as the legitimate prime minister.

Somare has also twice attempted to visit the country's governor-general to be sworn in as caretaker prime minister, in line with the Supreme Court rulings, but the titular head of state has refused to intervene.

This morning’s newspaper headlines in Australia:

Papua New Guinea Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia held for sedition - Herald-Sun (Melbourne)

PNG top judge charged and will face court - Sydney Morning Herald

Carr tries to dial down PNG drama - Courier-Mail (Brisbane)

Gillard urges restraint in PNG - Business Spectator

Australia urges restraint as PNG judge arrested - Yahoo 7 News

PNG to charge judges with sedition - The Australian

PNG top judge charged and will face court - Brisbane Times

Deputy PM Namah leads security operation to 'arrest' Chief Justice - PNG Perspective

Namah threatens to arrest Supreme Court judges

BY LIAM FOX
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

PAPUA NEW GUINEA'S GOVERNMENT has threatened to arrest the judges who ordered the reinstatement of Sir Michael Somare as Prime Minister.

Deputy prime minister Belden Namah threatened to arrest the three judges involved "for sedition" unless they resign.

Prime minister Peter O'Neill said Somare has no mandate to retake the PM role.

He said the judges are biased and have no right under the PNG constitution to order Somare’s reinstatement.

O’Neill rejected the suggestion he stand aside to allow Somare a caretaker role before next month’s general election.

"Why should we do that when we are heading towards an election...which takes place in six weeks time, when he has absolutely no mandate on the floor of parliament," O'Neill told the ABC.

Mr O'Neill earlier said the court had overstepped the separation of powers, and said he will not respect its decision.

"It has become apparent the Supreme Court has made decisions to try and create a chaotic situation in the country," he said.

"If the Supreme Court and members of the bench cared about the stability of the country, this should have been handed down after the elections and the election of a new government."

Departing Morauta attacks Somare record

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

ON THE EVE OF HIS RETIREMENT from politics, Papua New Guinea’s former prime minister Sir Mekere Morauta has taken a parting shot at his longtime adversary, Sir Michael Somare.

Sir Mekere says he’s satisfied with the reforms he put in place while he was prime minister between 1999 and 2002.

He’s credited with having stabilised government finances, a number of key public institutions and the economy from the verge of bankruptcy.

Sir Mekere says that subsequently, Sir Michael’s last tenure as Prime Minister did little for the country.

“At a time when oil and gold and copper revenues (flowed), in eight years he appropriated through the budget nearly K60 billion,” he said.

“One government for eight years - the result can’t be seen.”

Powes Parkop should be our next prime minister

BY REG RENAGI

HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER and first-term member of parliament, Powes Parkop, has done a lot for his National Capital District constituents; and gone beyond what any former NCD governor has done.

Indeed, Governor Parkop has achieved more for his constituents than the prime minister and cabinet members put together.

His many achievements in social obligation programs and related development initiatives these past five years makes this MP a very valued political asset for the Central people and for parliament as a whole.

A list of his achievements will be highlighted on all PNG-related FaceBook pages in the next few weeks before the June national elections.

In this way many FaceBook readers will see that Parkop is very good prime minister material.

Governor Parkop nominated for the 2012 national elections yesterday at Jack Piddick Park.

Amid the uncertainty, hopes for a new dawn

BY JO CHANDLER
THE AGE / SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

TIGHT SECURITY AND HIGH ANXIETY underwrote the final sitting of Papua New Guinea's outgoing Parliament this week, with rumours running hot that an 11th-hour power play would derail the looming national election and plunge the troubled nation deeper into uncharted straits.

Despite Prime Minister Peter O'Neill's efforts to douse claims that MPs seeking a delay of the poll were plotting against him, conspiracy theories electrified city-dwelling citizens anxious to use their votes to end the crippling political impasse of the past nine months. (How far such concerns resonate out in the landscape of the rural majority, where many long ago gave up on services or governance, is another story.)

As MPs gathered for the showdown on Tuesday, beefed-up security and the mysterious absence of the Speaker, Jeffrey Nape, fanned suspicion that something was up. For almost two hours the burgeoning online gallery of PNG's switched-on citizenry tweeted, posted and sweated on his non-appearance.

Exploding social media has emerged as a potent force in PNG's recent crisis, informing and recruiting grassroots networks and mobilising huge street protests last month.

Now it demanded to know whether the reviled Nape - whose autocratic and erratic style has long stirred controversy - was holed up somewhere cutting a deal. Or might he have been swept up by Task Force Sweep, the anti-corruption agency that had drawn a warrant for his arrest over allegations about missing development funds? (He has been quoted denying ever getting the money.)

According to the Post-Courier the next day, the Speaker had indeed been hoping to muster numbers to delay the poll even as the bells were ringing. He took his seat after the Prime Minister and others confronted him.

''In a rare show of unity, MPs on both sides of the House put their differences aside and unanimously agreed that the writs must be issued on Friday for the polls to be held now,'' the paper reported. Parliament was dissolved.

''Despite the political challenges and the constant uncertainty PNG has done it! We're going to elections,'' tweeted ''Tavurvur'', one of PNG's leading (albeit anonymous) political bloggers. Relief swept the digital airwaves. ''That's sweet news.'' ''Thank God, now we can move forward.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/amid-the-uncertainty-nation-hopes-for-new-dawn-20120518-1yw1w.html#ixzz1vFOAHdT7

Dorothy Tekwie pressured to quit electoral race

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

DOROTHY TEKWIE, THE PNG GREEN PARTY candidate for the Vanimo electorate, says she’s been pressured not to run in this year’s election by associates of rival candidate, deputy prime minister Belden Namah.

Dorothy Tekwie says she cannot submit to such pressure because the consequences of letting Mr Namah win a seat again would be disastrous not just for Vanimo but the country as well.

Ms Tekwie accused Mr Namah of abusing his power as an MP for personal gain.

She says she’d been offered six-figure sums to not run in the elections, which she has refused.

“I’ve also been threatened at times and intimidated by certain people that are associated with him,” Ms Tekwie said.

“I’m not going to step down because people ask me not to, because I’ve seen what is happening with my people in the inland where he comes from.

“People virtually have nothing. Women have one skirt for the whole year and nothing else while money that comes from their forest is being squandered to pay for political survival of certain people.”

Some reflections on political conflict and chaos

WE THINK YOU’LL ENJOY this short introduction to a speech made by Australia’s shadow foreign affairs minister, Julie Bishop, to the 28th Australia Papua New Guinea Business Forum and Trade Expo held in Brisbane recently.

I had planned today to begin my speech with some observations about the political landscape, and from here it all looks pretty chaotic.

The government is struggling to claim legitimacy because of the way it came to power.

The conflict between the current Prime Minister and the former Prime Minister doesn’t appear to be going away, particularly because of the nature by which the current Prime Minister came to power.

And of course there is a lot of volatility in the Parliament. The Speaker is under a cloud in relation to expenses and is concerned with his self preservation.

The Parliament is just holding together but there have been some pretty questionable deals done with some of the Members of Parliament and there is increasing concern that it could all fall apart.

But hey! That is enough on Canberra for one day!

O’Neill under threat over election timing, says ABC

PORT MORESBY CORRESPONDENT of the ABC, Liam Fox, is reporting renewed uncertainty over whether Papua New Guinea’s general election will proceed as scheduled.

Fox says many members of parliament still want the election deferred and that local media are reporting rumours of a vote of no-confidence against prime minister Peter O'Neill this week.

Australia's parliamentary secretary for foreign affairs, Richard Marles, says Australia is watching to see how events unfold in PNG.

"We've been given commitments from prime minister Peter O'Neill, and indeed many of the other senior political figures in PNG, that they intend to hold the elections on time, and we can take those commitments at face value," he said.

This week is expected to see the final sitting of parliament before the elections.

Can I defeat a political giant in the Lae Open?

BY LOUJAYA TONI

THIS WEEK people in the Lae Open electorate received a booklet in the mail about my campaign to win a seat in the national parliament at this year’s general elections.

A few contributors to PNG Attitude, as well as some of the entrants in the Crocodile Prize, are standing for election and I am one of them.

Along with the booklet there was a covering letter seeking financial support and setting out my bid for election.

I’m seeking to raise K220,000 for my campaign, a far cry from Belden Namah’s alleged K30 million budget.

I am also taking on a formidable opponent in Bart Philemon, who has held the seat for the last 20 years.  He is a consummate strategist and will be hard to beat.

Mr Philemon has kept the seat for so long because he has aligned himself with the Lae Chamber of Commerce and business houses in the city.  His base vote comes from public servants and private sector employees in the town.  It has been alleged that some business houses pay their employees a bonus to vote for him.

Mr Philemon opposed the recent parliamentary Bill for the 22 reserved seats for women, kept himself distant from the riots in Lae and seems uninterested in land issues involving the Ahi people, the traditional landowners of Lae City.  Mr Philemon and I are members of Ahi clans.

My focus in the campaign is the increasing lawlessness and poverty caused by immigration into Lae.  My strategy to deal with this involves the creation of ward registries so that those who have overstayed their welcome and need to return to their home provinces can be identified.

A bit drastic perhaps, but the registries will also record statistics which can be used to take stock of our human resource potential.

My campaign slogan is “Knowledge is power to change for a better quality of life”. Poverty alleviation can be achieved when we have the knowledge to make a change.  I hope people will catch my vision for change: which begins in the mindset.

I’m well-educated (MA in Communication Studies) and have a long history of community-based work.  I contested the 2007 elections in Lae and ended up fifth.  This time I hope to win.

In preparation for my tilt at power I attended a four-day training workshop to assist intending women candidates and their campaign managers conducted in March by the Department of Community Development.

There is a tendency in Papua New Guinea for women to vote the same as their men, sometimes unwillingly.  This time women and people with disabilities will be allowed separate polling booths and I am hoping this will give me an edge.

If you want to find out more about Loujaya’s policies email her at toniloujaya@yahoo.com or call her on (675) 7308 5873. And if there are more candidates out there who would like to share their vision for Papua New Guinea after 2012, PNG Attitude readers would like to hear from you

A rough guide to the PNG general elections

BY KEITH JACKSON

MORE THAN 40 POLITICAL PARTIES and well over 4,000 candidates have thrown their hats into the ring to contest late June’s general election in Papua New Guinea.

There are 109 seats on offer, which means that many putative representatives have been called - of whom few will be chosen.

We list here some of the main political parties which are contesting the elections(together with some of their leaders):

CDP - Christian Democratic Party

CDP - Constitutional Democratic Party [Ila Geno]

Greens Party [Dorothy Tekwe]

MA - Melanesian Alliance

MCP - Movement for Change Party [Gary Juffa]

NA - National Alliance Party [Sir Michael Somare]

NGP - New Generation Party [Bart Philemon]

PAP - People’s Action Party

PDM - People’s Democratic Movement Party [Paias Wingti]

PLP - People’s Labor Party

PNA - People National Assembly [Anderson Agiru]

PNC - People’s Congress Party [Peter O’Neill]

PNGCDP - PNG Constitutional Democratic Party

PNGCP - PNG Conservative Party

PNGCP - PNG Country Party

PNGNP - PNG National Party

PNP - Papua New Guinea Party [Belden Namah]

PP - Peoples Party [Peter Ipatas]

PPP - People’s Progress Party [Sir Julius Chan]

RDP - Rural Development Party [Jeffrey Nape]

THE - Triumph Heritage Empowerment Party [Don Polye]

UP - United Party [Sam Abal]

URP - United Response Party [William Duma]

Over 4,000 political hopefuls line up in PNG

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

THE DIRECTOR OF THE Institute of National Affairs in Papua New Guinea, Paul Barker, says it’s no surprise that there are a large number of candidates signing up for next month’s election.

The Electoral Commission says so far more than 4,000 people have put their names forward compared with about 2,800 in 2007.

Paul Barker says there is a significant amount of frustration over the way politicians have been running the country.

And he says gaining political office in PNG carries a lot of status and is financially rewarding.

“It’s almost sort of seen to be a passing of age exercise to come along and have a go,” said Mr Barker.

“People are often encouraged to do so by their own local communities.

“By and large you are seeing a lot of people who may not have a lot of money to start with becoming quite a bit more affluent during their term in office.”

The Electoral Commission is accepting nominations until 18 May.

Mounting tensions as PNG elections approach

BY BRITTANY DAMORA
EURASIA REVIEW

THE CURRENT IMPASSE between factions led by prime minister Peter O’Neill and deposed prime minister Sir Michael Somare occurs at a time when the fragile Papua New Guinea state apparatus is challenged by divisions both within and outside government.

This has led to a number of concerns, particularly surrounding the forthcoming elections, that business operations and the general public are becoming increasingly dissatisfied.

A Supreme Court ruling in December 2011 declared the government of Peter O’Neill to be illegal and ordered the restoration of his predecessor, Sir Michael Somare. The Supreme Court has also ruled that the Judicial Conduct Act passed in March 2012 is unconstitutional.

However, O’Neill and his supporters have persisted in their attempts to remove Chief Justice Injia. This has led to charges of judicial harassment against O’Neill. Even so, O’Neill has the backing of most of the civil service as well as a majority in parliament and has been treated as de facto head of state by foreign governments in spite of the Supreme Court ruling in favour of Somare.

This is set against the immediate backdrop of elections scheduled for mid-year but initially postponed for six months by parliament on 5 April by a vote of 63-11 due to a claimed ‘funding shortfall’, problems with the electoral roll and police not being ready to provide adequate security.

Amid rising tribal tensions and problems with voter enrolment in rural areas, protests have been held calling on the government to ensure the June election goes ahead on time.

The political temperature is rising in PNG and it is getting increasingly hard for companies to continue their business-as-usual approach.

The Australian government has said little in public about the on-going impasse. It appears to have adopted a practical approach of working with whoever appears to be in charge of the state apparatus.

Nevertheless, Australian statements on the situation will be listened to carefully in PNG. The short-term outlook for Papua New Guinea is increased political instability and social unrest, with the possibility of mass violence if elections are postponed indefinitely and/or a state of emergency is declared.

In the Highlands region, PNG soldiers have been deployed where security problems are threatening two major resource projects. Landowner disputes have disrupted key construction work for Exxon Mobil’s LNG project, while Porgera’s gold mine has enduring complications related to illegal mining.

Although currently there is no state of emergency in the region, troops are likely to continue assisting police despite local complaints regarding the military presence. The timing of deployment of the 30 soldiers to the region is indicative of continuing concern that growing lawlessness will deter foreign investors.

There is evidence of amplified unrest in PNG as rival groups seek to capitalise on the increased capital flowing into the country. Attacks on facilities directly linked with the LNG project are likely over the period of construction as clans try to use force to extract concessions or, more likely, fight with rival groups over what has already been allocated in royalties.

Increased criminality in the short and medium term is likely. Further disruptions to the projects will be threatened unless contracts are negotiated and outstanding payments to landowners are received.

Brittany Damora is an Asia Pacific intelligence analyst at AKE Group, based in London and Singapore

We have suffered since independence: candidate

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

A FIRST TIME CANDIDATE in the Papua New Guinea elections says the extreme suffering of the people in her electorate is the reason she is putting herself forward.

Leah Angowai is standing for the Melanesian Labour Party in the Koroba-Lake Kopiago district of Hela Province.

She says there hasn’t been any development in her area since PNG gained independence from Australia in 1975.

“The lack of services here, I am standing for that one,” Ms Angowai said.

“Some other provinces they are lucky to have health services working right, their new buildings, their new roads, they’re good with bridges and infrastructure, health services and education services, all these. And what about my place?”

Leah Angowai says she’s got strong support from both women and men in her district and is confident of their backing when PNG goes to the polls in June.

O’Neill assures civil society that elections are go

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

TRADE UNION LEADERS, churches and civil society groups have met Papua New Guinea prime minister Peter O’Neill and received assurances that the elections will go ahead on time, with writs to be issued on 18 May.

The statement came amid signs of a continuing battle in cabinet, with some members of Mr O’Neill’s coalition pressing for a delay in the June poll, claiming the electoral commission will not be ready.

Protest rallies were held in Port Moresby this week and while schools and some businesses shut their doors, wider disruption did not occur.

Widespread strikes had been threatened but Trades Union Congress president Michael Malabag said that after Mr O’Neill’s assurances this seemed unlikely.

“We will be reviewing our stand, but look, if the guarantee of the elections is May 18th there is nothing to benefit if we are going to withhdraw services because everything was dependent on what was going to happen,” Mr Malabag said.

“Now we have got a guarantee of May 18th, the Judicial Bill is before the courts, so basically there is nothing else for us to keep pushing, but then it will be dependent on all my trade union affiliates.”

O’Neill pledges to make most of resource boom

BY HAMISH McDONALD
SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

PETER O'NEILL LAUNCHED HIS ELECTION CAMPAIGN on Friday night promising to use the country's multiplying natural resource wealth to improve education and health services, roads and provide greater protection against crime.

At a gathering of supporters in Port Moresby, Mr O'Neill pledged to extend free education up to year 12 by 2014, when a $15 billion liquefied natural gas project comes on stream, massively boosting government revenues.

In his nine months in power since ousting former prime minister Sir Michael Somare in tense parliamentary manoeuvres, Mr O'Neill has already removed school fees up to year 10 and now seeks to emphasise his government's commitment to improving the lives of ordinary citizens.

He also promised to rebuild the country's near derelict system of public hospitals to provide free basic health service, and to rejuvenate the ageing and under-resourced police and defence services to ensure better public safety in PNG's crime-ridden towns.

''There is a lot of excitement about changing the direction in which we are managing the affairs of our country,'' Mr O'Neill said. ''We understand that we have mismanaged our past opportunities. We are committed to making sure we don't make the same mistakes in the future.''

The election has now been set for 23 June, after a move to delay it by six months was set aside.

MPs maintain pressure for election delay

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

PRESSURE IS BUILDING on Papua New Guinea’s electoral commissioner, Andrew Trawen, from parliamentarians who want the elections to be deferred.

Despite announcements last week by prime minister Peter O’Neill that the election will go ahead as originally scheduled in late June, many MPs continue to push for a deferral.

Several MPs met Mr Trawen yesterday to discuss election preparations and the state of the common roll.

Deputy prime minister Belden Namah claims that incomplete and flawed common rolls will cause chaos in the Highlands region.

He also says that parliament’s motion to defer elections has not been repealed and still stands.

Cabinet minister and Mt Hagen MP, William Duma, says a two or three month deferral should be adequate.

“The national budget is handed down in November every year,” Mr Duma said. “So we are saying we have to have an election and have a new government formed in time for the budget to be presented in November this year.

“All we are saying [to Andrew Trawen] is look, if you are not ready admit it. We have reasonable grounds to believe that you are not ready: admit it and we’ll work together.”

Alarming statement forecasts draconian laws for PNG

BY KEITH JACKSON

THERE’S AN EMAIL doing the rounds in Papua New Guinea today that, even if what it says is half true, reflects a worsening threat to democratic governance in that country.

The statement alleges that five new bills will be passed through parliament today which will substantially erode PNG’s democratic fabric.

However, as has happened repeatedly in recent months, parliament did not meet this morning because it lacked a quorum.

I reproduce the statement here while warning readers that the assertions it makes may be wrong or exaggerated.

But we cannot be too careful where attempts may be underway to remove or corrode people’s rights in the way the email suggests.

The end of democracy & the beginning of dictatorship

Dearest Beloved Fellow Citizen,

When Parliament sits today, Wednesday 18th 2012, we can expect our last few hours of Democracy to diminish, as this rogue government attempts to pass 5 reactive, retrospective Bills in their desperation to grapple at the last meager straws of power.

The following is a description of these bills:

Bill to Amend the Judicial Conduct Act. 

There are two certified copies of the JCA. One is the 30/3 JCA

The second is the 4/4 JCA. The second had extra clauses inserted.

The proposed bill to be tabled for passing is an amendment to the second act that basically adds on that the failure of one or a bench of judges to comply with the JCA will see them criminally charged and sentenced to prison of up to 7 years and lose all retirement benefits

The second bill set to pass is the Parliamentary Privilege in Court Proceedings.

This states in principle that only the parliament Hansard may be used as evidence when interpreting parliament legislation and no other evidence. This is very biased and a judge should have all necessary facts and evidence before a decision is reached.

A Supreme Court Amendment Bill that will render null and void the supreme court's order from last December that Sir Michael be reinstated as PM.

This is a no brainer and dead set wrong period.

A Police Control Bill that fundamentally gives the parliamentarians more control over the police personnel.

The most explosive one - a Media Control Bill, which will basically aim to control all forms of media (mainstream and social).

Anyone seen to be speaking out against the government is liable for dissension/treason and will be arrested and charged accordingly. That?s right they will take away your freedom of speech.

Beloved fellow citizen, if you have been complacently going about your daily business, without a care or concern about these serious events that have been and are still taking place in obviously corrupt government, let this message now be a loud blaring siren in your ear.

If we allow this government to stay in power, we will truly see Dictatorship come to pass in our generation?and what of our children?

We continue to pray to our God for His will to be done, but are we willing to step out in faith and do what is necessary, like Moses, Daniel, and others? We all have social responsibilities, and now is the time to act.

For your information, awareness, and serious consideration. Attached, please find the 1st and 2nd copies of the Judicial Conduct Bills, and the first 2 Bills on the list above. The other 3 will be forwarded to you in due time, fellow citizen.

If you are concerned for the future generations of this nation, please forward to 10 or more people.

Bad governance & politics & PNG’s lost decade

BY ANDREW ANTON MAKO
DEVELOPMENT POLICY BLOG

IN THE LAST 10 YEARS, PNG has experienced unprecedented, high economic growth. However, that decade can be seen as a “wasted decade” of missed opportunities for the resource-rich country.

There is little to show on the ground in terms of tangible development. Most major towns of the country have faced dramatic fall and deterioration of public infrastructure and government services.

For example, Madang which was once affectionately called “beautiful” is now dirty and is witnessing a rise in criminal activity. One can only imagine what the situation is like in the rural areas where more than 80 percent of the country’s population lives.

Public services and infrastructure are collapsing, and the rural population is being affected the most. PNG’s Human Development Index (HDI) continues to fall – it was positioned 153 out of 187 countries in 2011 by the UNDP. Corruption remains a huge development hurdle for PNG, and in 2011 PNG was ranked 154 out of 182 by Transparency International.

I am from a very remote village deep in the Highlands of PNG. In the last fifteen years, the single health center, the primary school which I attended as a boy, an airstrip that brings supplies to the village, and agricultural extension services have all closed down, and shrubs are now growing on a new road which was built in the late 1990s to connect my village to the nearest town. The 10,000 plus people in that part of the country are literally struggling each day. That is the grim situation of most parts of rural PNG.

On International Women’s Day this year at ANU, Dame Carol Kidu spoke about one aspect of PNG’s decade-long record economic growth and the opportunities the country has missed to improve the lives of the people – the deterioration of the national health system broadly, and  the appalling state of maternal health and child mortality in particular in rural PNG.

A key cause of this, as Dame Carol pointed out, is the lack of effective leadership and management at all levels of government – local, provincial and national.

At a public lecture organized by ANU’s National Security College in March 2012, titled ‘Papua New Guinea: Where to Now?‘, three experts on PNG affirmed that political issues, especially the struggle among political leaders and their cohorts for power in government has had a direct and negative impact on PNG’s socio-economic conditions.

This mismatch between PNG’s record economic growth and the fall in governance and basic public services are symptoms of the so-called “resource curse” or the “paradox of plenty”.

People losing faith in PNG politics, says ANU academic

The political instability in Papua New Guinea has shattered the hopes of its people, according to PROFESSOR RON MAY an academic at the Australian National University. Transcript from Radio Australia...

A WHILE AGO WE WERE ABLE TO SAY that PNG was one of the few post-colonial states that had managed to maintain a democratic system of elections on schedule and constitutional changes of government.

That record's been shaken a bit now, I don't think there's much doubt about that, and some of the things that have happened since August last year have really been rather unfortunate.

I think we're seeing a bit of a change in the style of politics. Certainly the Somare government itself, before Somare was ousted in the way he was, had been exercising what people in PNG referred to as executive dominance.

Motions of no confidence against the government were avoided by adjourning parliament and the government used its majority to dominate parliamentary procedures.

But the way Somare was ousted and the events that have taken place since then have taken this sort of strategy a step further. The fact that the O'Neill-Namah coalition has had a majority in the parliament, has led it to engage in a series of maneuvers that have been clearly unconstitutional, to ignore the rulings of the court in order to stay in power. And the latest move of that of course was the move to postpone the election.

There are clearly differences between the prime minister, the deputy prime minister, Belden Namah, who has been one of the people pushing to postpone the election, and the Speaker himself, who of course was also the enforcer of the Somare government. He has a record of acting in rather odd ways to get his own way, and there is clearly a bit of a difference between those three figures.

It's pretty clear from the demonstration the other day that a lot of people are quite pissed off. There's no doubt that when O'Neill took over the government there was a lot of support for him, there was a lot of cynicism towards the previous Somare government, and even though the Supreme Court ruled against the way in which Somare had been removed, O'Neill had a clear majority in parliament and there was a lot of support for a change of government.

I think most of that political capital has now been lost. People are very cynical about the way the government has behaved, or the so-called government has behaved since August, and clearly people are aware that there are a lot of differences within the government.

Western governor quits O’Neill coalition

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

THE GOVERNOR OF Papua New Guinea’s Western Province says he is leaving the O’Neill government because of his concern over the recent decisions of its leaders.

Bob Danaya, who has been a minor player in the coalition, says he is unhappy, particularly with the passing of the Judicial Conduct Bill and the move to defer elections which prime minister Peter O’Neill has since backtracked on.

Mr Danaya says the current leadership is showing a lack of maturity and he suspects more experienced leaders in the coalition may regret supporting it.

He says ulterior motives are driving the government’s decisions, mainly related to the ongoing court battle with parliament’s Somare group which also claims to be government.

“I am very concerned of the way the current regime is running the government,” he said, “so I wouldn’t want to be part of this regime which is making controversial decisions that may backfire later on once the court decision is made.

“So I will officially move across to the middle bench.”

Government denies rumours of Namah sacking

SBS AUSTRALIA & SOURCES

The Papua New Guinea government has denied rumours of a split within its ranks and that deputy prime minister Belden Namah, seen by many as the architect of the catastrophic parliamentary vote to try to delay the election, had been sacked by Mr O'Neill.

A sombre Mr Namah sat next to a smiling Mr O'Neill at the Guise Stadium in Port Moresby as a protest rally, variously estimated at 4-10.000 people, called upon the government to hold the national elections when they were due and to act with integrity towards the judiciary.

Prime minister Peter O’Neill (after some toing and froing) and electoral commissioner Andrew Trawen, who has remained staunch through some very difficult days, say the nation's election will take place as scheduled in late June.

Thousands of protesters marched on Sir John Guise Stadium in the heart of the city's government district on Tuesday, demanding the government stop interfering in the electoral process and that it roll back laws giving parliament the power to suspend judges.

"(Cabinet), the parliament, does not have the power to direct the electoral commissioner," Prime Minister Peter O'Neill told the crowd.

"Parliament will not interfere with the electoral commissioner."

With 51% of that nation's eligible voters in the highlands, issuing the writs when the rolls aren't ready would be unfair, Mr O'Neill said.

"How do you expect them to vote, what about their rights," he said.

Electoral commissioner Andrew Trawen, addressing the crowd in Tok Pisin, said the election will go ahead as scheduled in late June, but writs will be issued three weeks late to allow for greater public scrutiny of the rolls.

Mr O'Neill also made a conditional promise to repeal the controversial Judicial Conduct Act, a law the government passed, then used to suspend the nation's chief justice, Sir Salamo Injia, and Justice Nicholas Kirriwom.

He said parliament would repeal the law provided Sir Salamo and Justice Kirriwom stepped down voluntarily.

"If they do the right thing, I will do the right thing," he said.

The peaceful, but at times rowdy, protest was made up of a highly sceptical crowd.

Student representative president Emmanuel Issacs told the crowd they would wait to see what parliament did next before deciding on further civil action.

Meanwhile, a scheduled parliamentary sitting was cancelled when an insufficient number of MPs turned up this afternoon.

Parliament is expected to resume tomorrow at 10am.

PNG elections to go ahead says Andrew Trawen

AAP

PAPUA NEW GUINEA'S ELECTORAL COMMISSIONER says the 2012 poll will go ahead as scheduled, despite last week's controversial vote by parliament to defer it for six months.

Andrew Trawen says he is currently seeking legal advice on the constitutionality of the last week’s decision by parliament to defer the elections until October.

"I will proceed to advise the governor general Sir Michael Ogio to issue writs for the 2012 elections as scheduled on 27 April," he said in a statement.

"And I want the people of PNG to know that I have always maintained that the commission is prepared and the 2012 elections will go ahead as planned."

Mr Trawen was expected to attend a special cabinet meeting today.

The government is expected to report the results of the meeting to parliament tomorrow, when students, former soldiers, NGOs, trade unionists and rank and file citizens will protest against the deferral by marching on parliament house.

Mr Trawen said election preparations were on track and the commission was doing its best to prepare and deliver credible electoral rolls for a 23 June poll.

"I must assure voters nationwide that names of as many eligible citizens as possible will be shown on the final rolls that will be used for polling," he said.

He also addressed an election funding shortfall of K60 million cited by the government.

"The K180 million appropriated by parliament is not sufficient to adequately and properly conduct the 2012 elections, regarded as the most crucial elections in the history of PNG," he said.

"I have directed my finance director to resubmit the shortfall bid of K60 million to the Department of Treasury for consideration in the monthly budgetary reviews."

Mr Trawen has consistently rejected comments from deputy PM Belden Namah and Speaker Jeffery Nape that parliament has the power to defer elections.

PNG civil society rises to confront its politicians

BY KEITH JACKSON

A NATIONAL DAY OF PROTEST is planned in Papua New Guinea on Tuesday as trade unions, businesses, civil society organisations, universities, churches and rank and file citizens convene a national day of action and a march on parliament.

The day of action is to challenge the O’Neill government’s move, approved by parliament on Thursday, to defer the 2012 national elections by six months.

A media release issued on behalf of a group called ‘Civil Society and all Coalition Partners’, says the move to defer the election is “unconstitutional and denies the right of every PNG citizen to vote every five years.”

The statement goes on to say:

This move is unacceptable to the people of PNG. This prime minister has lied to the people saying that the elections will proceed as normal and then goes back on his word.

We the people of PNG do not want to hear lies! We the people of PNG want to have our say through our votes and we will not be denied our rights to vote in the elections!

We the people of PNG are now demanding the government to rescind this motion to ‘defer the elections’ immediately!

We demand that the elections go ahead at the appointed time. By 27 April, the writs must be issued and due election process allowed to occur.

We the people of PNG declare that we will not relent in our protest until our demands are complied with!

Demonstrators will converge at Sir John Guise Stadium by 8am Tuesday and march on Parliament House.

Bus pick-ups will be done in Gerehu, Morata, Bomana, 14-mile, Brown River, Porebada, Hanuabada, Sabama, Taurama and other areas.

The organisers make a clarion call for “all Papua New Guineans to come … wear your independence day PNG tee-shirts.

The statements says that people will “march, protest and camp outside Parliament House until parliament rescinds the motion to defer the election.”

Double backflip with pike as O’Neill does a u-turn

BY KEITH JACKSON

THE ABC IS REPORTING that, in a statement released today, prime minister Peter O'Neill says parliament did not have his authority to defer the national election by six months in a vote taken on Thursday.

Faced with a withering response to the decision by Papua New Guineans (with some extreme views calling for the assassination of the leadership and military intervention) and expressions of concern from the Australian government, Mr O’Neill has revisited the decision.

"The Electoral Commissioner's brief to me dated April 2 did not recommend deferral of elections,” he said. “All effort must be made to assure security and integrity of the elections."

And he could have mentioned the integrity of the Constitution as well.

Parliament, including Mr O'Neill, had voted 63-11 on Thursday to defer the June elections for six months after hearing a report that preparations were inadequate, although a range of other reasons were also offered for the decision - including civil strife in the Southern Highlands.

Cabinet is expected to meet on Monday to review election preparations ahead of Tuesday's sitting of parliament, where the decision seems highly likely to be reversed.

At this stage deputy prime minister Belden Namah, who was especially strident in promoting a deferral, has not commented publicly but Mr O’Neill’s hasty announcement today indicates that he is back in charge of the processes of his government.

Namah’s triumph - PNG votes to defer elections

IN A SIGNAL VICTORY for deputy prime minister Belden Namah – the wild man of PNG politics - Papua New Guinea’s parliament today voted to postpone the national elections for six months.

The vote passed 63-11 following a short debate and represents a significant loss – and loss of face – for prime minister Peter O’Neill, whose days in office must now be numbered.

Speaking in parliament, Namah warned against foreign intervention in the decision.

"Whatever Bob Carr says about sanctions, I want to say ... do not threaten the independent state of PNG," Namah said.

"You must respect our wishes. You must not intrude into our election process."

Namah said the polls must be delayed to allow for proper security to be implemented in the volatile Southern Highlands.

Electoral commissioner Andrew Trawen has repeatedly said that the election will go ahead as scheduled

But he and O’Neill were not counting on the persuasive powers of Belden Namah.

O’Neill breaks a solemn promise so newly given

BY ALEXANDER RHEENEY
PNG EXPOSED

YESTERDAY THE O’NEILL government used the controversial Judicial Conduct Act to refer Papua New Guinea’s chief justice Sir Salamo Injia to the governor-general to set up a tribunal to investigate alleged judicial misconduct.

This is despite Peter O’Neill assuring all Papua New Guineans in a nationwide televised address just last week that his government would delay implementing the law for nine months in order to carry out a public consultation.

National and Supreme Court justice Nicholas Kirriwom has also been referred to the head of state in an unprecedented development in the country’s short history.

The O’Neill government’s leader of government business, Moses Maladina, told parliament yesterday morning:

It is therefore my important but difficult task to move a motion pursuant to section 5 of the Judicial Conduct Act 2012 for parliament to refer His Honour the Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia to a tribunal of his peers for an inquiry as to whether the terms of the Judicial Conduct Act 2012 have been breached.

I also move a motion pursuant to section 5 of the Judicial Conduct Act 2012 for parliament to refer His Honour Judge Kirriwom to a tribunal of his peers for an inquiry as to whether the terms of the Judicial Conduct 2012 have been breached.

Under PNG laws the public prosecutor is empowered to refer PNG politicians and top bureaucrats under the country’s leadership code if it finds the state has a prima facie case.

However the direct involvement of the governor general – through a motion of parliament as stipulated under this controversial law – now enables this symbolic office to play a direct role in the nation’s affairs.

PNG opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu condemned the referral and warned that PNG faces an uncertain future with parliament now having the ultimate authority over the judiciary, an institution which many Papua New Guineans regard as the country’s last bastion of hope.

Parliamentarians - led by sidelined supreme court-reinstated PM Sir Michael Somare - are studying the implications of these developments in parliament.

The referral will infuriate student protesters, trade unions and civil society led by the Community Coalition Against Corruption who have threatened to go on a nationwide protest and stop-work if the O’Neill government did not revoke the law in this session of parliament.

Election foreboding: Votes and guns in PNG

BY SCOTT FLOWER
THE LOWY INTERPRETER

OVER THE LAST MONTH, rarely a day has passed without some drama in Papua New Guinea's political landscape. Many of these events point to the likelihood of instability during the 23 June elections.

Should the PNG government and its regional friends fail to address the evolving political and security challenges in the next three months, the elections will probably be marred by escalating violence, a collapse of electoral integrity and the erosion of local and international confidence in the quality of PNG's democracy.

On the back of a still boiling constitutional dispute regarding the legitimacy of the O'Neill government, in the last little while things appear to be going from bad to worse.

PNG's police commissioner Tom Kulunga and two senior officers were arrested on contempt of court charges, mass student protests in Port Moresby followed laws passed by parliament giving it the ability to suspend senior supreme and national court judges perceived to be biased, and opposition MPs continued to avoid parliamentary sessions as part of their protest to be recognised as the legitimate government.

More worrying from a security perspective is prime minister O'Neill's vow on 25 March to declare a State of Emergency in Hela province to protect PNG's LNG project, upon which the country's future economic development hinges.

The PNG government and the electoral commission have previously claimed that security forces would be withdrawn from the LNG project area in order to cope with security operations for the election. Implementing a State of Emergency in Hela will tie up these resources, which are much needed to provide security around the election.

Security forces managing the election in the highlands provinces already have their work cut out for them, given the proliferation of homemade shotguns in the region.

In the last six years, I have taken many trips up and down the Highlands Highway, and I have never seen as many homemade shotguns being flaunted publicly as I did driving from Wabag to Mt Hagen in January this year.

The good news is that, despite market demand, there has not been a significant influx of factory-made weapons, and a lack of ammunition for homemade guns would appear to be a reasonable constraint on broad-scale violence.

'The 2012 National Elections in Papua New Guinea: Averting Violence', a Lowy Policy Brief I co-authored which was released last week, draws attention to the areas requiring immediate investment to support peaceful and lawful elections.

The paper makes a number of recommendations, but following recent comments from Austalia’s newly minted foreign minister, a critical element not directly addressed is the need for Australia to assess its own agenda in PNG and the way it attempts to influence PNG politics to achieve foreign policy objectives.

If the PNG government is to hold peaceful and lawful elections, it urgently needs foreign support in administration, security and logistics. Immediate support could include:

Negotiations with the PNG government to establish legal arrangements and protections for foreign personnel deployed for the election. 

Initiating preparations for a short-term deployment of foreign police and military contingent for the election period.

Providing more helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft and crews to support timely delivery, collection and security of ballot boxes.

Supporting an independently run pre-election weapons amnesty and buy-back.

The perception among many Papua New Guineans and the PNG political elite (as evidenced on PNG social media sites) is that Australia is paternalistic and disrespectful to PNG's sovereignty.

Comments by Australia's new Foreign Minister Bob Carr that he would initiate punitive diplomatic and economic sanctions on PNG if elections were delayed (comments he has since described as a 'mistake') have further reduced Australia's legitimacy and agency to deliver support.

It is time for Australia to step back from its self-appointed role as lead actor and share the stage with other countries to try a different approach, one free of the colonial legacy and the 'Tok Masta' rhetoric that a growing number of PNG locals perceive and resist.

Scott Flower is a McKenzie Fellow at the University of Melbourne. He is regularly engaged by multinational companies as a risk management consultant to major resource projects in PNG

The 2012 national elections in Papua New Guinea

THE LOWY INSTITUTE (extracts)

This paper draws on fieldwork undertaken by the authors between January 2011 and January 2012 among local communities in Port Moresby and three of the more unstable highlands provinces of PNG (Southern Highlands, Western Highlands and Enga).

AS IT APPROACHES NATIONAL ELECTIONS in June, Papua New Guinea is at a turning point in its history.

Despite ten unbroken years of economic growth, rates of poverty, disease, illiteracy and crime are increasing. The bounty on offer from the current resources boom has the potential to increase the stakes of political and electoral competition. The government also stands at a point of generational change.

Public expectations of improved government performance and effectiveness in delivering essential services are rising. The government that assumes power after the elections will be under more pressure to deliver on the ‘social contract’ with the people.

The 2012 elections are also overshadowed by the unresolved political dispute between Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and former Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare. This was triggered by a decision of the Supreme Court on 12 December that Somare was the legitimate Prime Minister of PNG because there was no vacancy in the office of Prime Minister when Peter O’Neill was elected to the position in parliament on 2 August 2011.

The political dispute between O’Neill and Somare and the predictions of instability and violence in parts of the Highlands provinces harm PNG’s democracy and international reputation. It is important, therefore, that public trust in PNG’s democracy is maintained and in some respects restored.

Peaceful elections that deliver a strong effective coalition government capable of converting resources wealth into better services would assist in rebuilding that trust. The lack of resolution to the political impasse and the 26 January 2012 attempted mutiny within the PNG Defence Force supported by the Somare camp further reflects the immense value of holding political office in PNG.

An Australian journalist monitoring the approaching national elections recently described PNG as ‘teetering on a wide political fault line’, whilst some PNG academics argue that their country is ‘facing a political cyclone in the 2012 elections.’

Such analogies fatalistically accept and imply that the 2012 election will be violent and corrupt as if such an outcome were an axiomatic law of nature.

A more rational approach is to properly understand the likely contributors to electoral irregularities and violence in PNG, and to design responses to mitigating these factors on this analysis.

Read the full article at http://www.lowyinstitute.org/

Bob Brown advises PNG to ‘throw out crook politicians’

AUSTRALIAN GREENS LEADER BOB BROWN believes Australia should be offering Papua New Guinea greater assistance in having a fair election, rather than threatening it with isolation.

And he has said the Papua New Guinean people should “throw out” politicians who are “doing the wrong thing”.

Foreign Minister Bob Carr’s recent threat that failure by PNG to hold its planned mid-year elections would be a "shocking model" for the Pacific is still reverberating.

Senator Carr warned of a sharp Australian response if prime minister Peter O'Neill heeded internal calls to put off mid-year elections.

"We'd have no alternative but to organise the world to condemn and isolate Papua New Guinea," he told Sky News. "We'd be in a position of having to consider sanctions."

Senator Carr later issued a statement saying his comments had been "misunderstood and used out of context".

Senator Brown said Australia should support PNG.

"Instead of making the statement Bob Carr made, we should be offering PNG even greater assistance to make sure the election ... is fair, above board and not corrupted," Senator Brown told reporters in Canberra on Friday.

He said there were a lot of concerns about PNG's election process, although 30 observers will go to the country.

He said Australia's nearest neighbour has big problems - the world's second-worst maternal death rate and huge HIV aids problems.

While it has a large resource base, it does mean "there is potential for money to flow to outside interests, including Australian corporations, at the expense of local people".

There is also the problem of the takeover of land by foreign companies.

"This election is an opportunity for the people of Papua New Guinea to assert their own control over their own land," Senator Brown said.

"If their politicians are doing the wrong thing, then throw them out."

Govt to consult on bill – but will it be fair dinkum?

BY KEITH JACKSON

OPPONENTS OF THE NEW Judicial Bill which has caused mass protests in Papua New Guinea seem to have secured a significant win. But have they?

The PNG government has deferred implementing the law, which gives parliament the power to oust judges and thus wield huge influence over the justice system.

Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has now asked the Constitutional and Law Reform Commission to undertake public consultation on the issue.

But Commission chairman, Gabriel Kapris, has already tainted this process by saying he is confident the public will support the bill.

"Once the Commission goes out and gives the public the opportunity to see the importance of this amendment, they will appreciate why the government has seen it proper to pass the bill," he said.

The Commission will report to parliament in nine months, after the national election.

Pressure on O’Neill to repeal judiciary law

BY ALEXANDER RHEENEY

PRESSURE IS GROWING ON Papua New Guinea’s O’Neill government to repeal the Judicial Conduct Act with the business community joining civil society and students to condemn its enactment.

The Papua New Guinea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PNGCCI) said the separation of powers was a key component of democratic institutions and the law passed by the O’Neill government last week would see parliament interfering in the conduct of judicial proceedings.

“The constitution provides for the separation of powers such that the judiciary is charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the politicians and public servants obey the constitution,” PNGCCI president John Leahy said in a statement.

“Actions such as the Judicial Conduct bill attempt to undermine these sacrosanct constitutional arrangements.

“The law should be repealed and additional resources provided to the Ombudsman Commission to help them do their job using laws that are already in place,” he said.

The O’Neill government appears to be relenting to the pressure with a report yesterday quoting the chair of the Constitutional Law Reform Commission, MP Gabriel Kapris, as saying the government will not implement the act until the conclusion of a full public consultation program.

However opponents of the act are determined to force parliament to repeal it despite Mr Kapris’ assurance that the government will embark on a consultation process with all stakeholders.

Options being considered by students, civil society, trade unions and PNG social media networks are nationwide strikes and sit-in protests in main urban centers.

While parliament-elected prime minister Peter O’Neill refused to give in to demands by hundreds of student protesters for the act to be repealed, he is beginning to find himself increasingly isolated by growing public opinion against a law, which he claims in a nationwide television address would “strengthen the conduct” of PNG’s national and supreme court judges.

Assertions by his attorney general Dr Allan Marat during an interview with Radio New Zealand that last Friday’s protest march in Port Moresby was led by Engan students, who were purportedly angered by the O’Neill government’s personal crusade to remove Engan and Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia, also backfired.

Judges have biases and prejudices, says O’Neill

BY KEITH JACKSON

PRIME MINISTER PETER O’NEILL last night invoked the concept of a “people’s government” to defend the introduction of new laws that he says “define and impose clarity on judicial behavior that the wider community [may] perceive as biased.”

In a nationwide address following demonstrations against the laws in the streets of Port Moresby on Friday, Mr O’Neill admitted that some of the laws made by his government “may seem harsh and vindictive at first impression in the eyes of critics and opponents.”

But he said that “judges – like any public servants - are employees of the people and the nation. They can be disciplined if there is reasonable evidence of ethical and professional lapse...

“In a nutshell, our people’s parliament has made a new law to define the judicial behavior in relation to the conduct of judges.

“This law is definitely not a political tool for usurping the impartiality of judges or for eroding the letter, intent and spirit of judicial and justice administration,” he said.

Mr O’Neill began his address by restating his view that “governments and prime ministers cannot be installed in office by the courts – especially not by the judiciary.

“Judges of our national and supreme courts have no jurisdiction to decide, appoint and install a government or a prime minister to office.”

He said the new law “is not draconian and does not erode the impartiality of the judges as voiced by critics, including the usual two or three publicity-seeking members of the PNG Law Society.”

He claimed that Australia, India, Canada and other Commonwealth nations had similar laws. “We are not alone here.”

Mr O’Neill said the government “appreciated intervention in the public interest” by students of the University of Papua New Guinea in relation to the judicial conduct law.

“However, let me say that our people’s government does not have a fight with the nation’s judiciary.

“The people’s parliament has put into written law what was - until last Wednesday – a mere understanding and belief which we all took for granted that every judge on the national and supreme court is free of bias and prejudice.”

But he went on to say: “Judges are human beings with emotions. They have feelings, biases and prejudices. They have families, relatives, tribesmen, and school and college friends too.

“Why would they not be biased and prejudiced one way or another when any of their family or friends has a court case that comes before them?”

See transcript of the full address below

Address to the nation by the PNG prime minister

BY HON PETER O’NEILL CMG MP

Tonight prime minister Peter O’Neill has used Papua New Guinea’s mass media to address the nation following protests and demonstrations against changes to the laws affecting the judiciary in PNG (Judicial Conduct Bill 2012)

MY FELLOW CITIZENS AND RESIDENTS of our great nation. It is indeed my pleasant duty to talk to you about our national affairs.

Nearly 8 months ago on the 2nd of August 2011, our Government was created. Our Government is the product of dissent and dissatisfaction with the nine year-old National Alliance Party-led government.

Seventy-two Members of Parliament -- who are elected representatives of their people – responded to a motion to change the government of the day and thereby voted accordingly in Parliament to deliver a new Government for Papua New Guinea.

Parliament is where all governments of Papua New Guinea were created and changed since Independence in 1975. Parliament is also where all Prime Ministers of Papua New Guinea are elected and deposed.

Governments and Prime Ministers cannot be installed in office by the Courts – especially not by the Judiciary.

Judges of our National and Supreme Courts have no jurisdiction to decide, appoint and install a government or a Prime Minister to office.

The Judiciary can make their ruling on a constitutional reference of the type filed by the East Sepik Provincial Government and several other parties that disputed Parliament’s creation of our Government and of my election as Prime Minister.

But the Judiciary can only inform and advise their ruling as a recommendation to Parliament through the Speaker.

It is then up to the Speaker of Parliament to accept or reject the judicial ruling because under the “separation of powers” of the three arms of Government – that is the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary – one cannot dictate to the other or interfere in the other’s duties, functions and responsibilities.

The exception to the status quo is where an enabling legislation gives authority for one arm of government to interact with the other in a specified manner.

That is the legal and political precedent, fact and reality which our Government has steadfastly and repeatedly voiced and explained in the face of uninformed criticism and blame-passing by our critics.

Our Government – and especially its leadership – is not afraid to take all the responsibility, credit and blame for all decisions and developments affecting our nation since August last year.

Our Government is happy to equally accept credit where we have done well and blame and criticism where we have - with the best intentions – deliberately moved to redirect and reshape national development.

We are a Government that pledged and committed ourselves as inclusive and all-accommodating, right at the beginning. The foundation of our Government are the citizens – every man, woman and child – of this nation.

Our Government is the “People’s Government” and I urge all citizens to embrace that ownership.

Our Government took office to create, assert and deliver positive and gainful economic, political and social changes in the lives of all our people.  Our Government is not afraid to admit that we are in office to deliver goods and services to support the lives of all our people.

Our Government came into office to change and redirect the way our national affairs has been governed and managed over the last 37 years.

It is no secret that we have moved decisively to re-align the Legislature, the Executive and now the Judiciary to be positively and gainfully proactive in the leadership role each plays. They are constitutionally bound to exercise their powers for the overall stability and good governance of our nation.

Our Government is convinced that the three important arms of Government must step out and step up to embrace their constitutional roles and be seen to be delivering their functions and responsibilities effectively and efficiently.

Despite what our critics have said about us lately, our eight-month old government is “the government of the people, for the people and by the people” through their elected representatives – not through their appointed public officials.

At present there are 89 elected Members of Parliament making up the numerical majority of our people’s Government in Parliament.

Our Government has made use of this numerical majority to make laws that we believe are good for our nation in the long run.

Some laws we have made may seem harsh and vindictive at first impression in the eyes of critics and opponents of our Government.

O’Neill will explain new powers to PNG people

AAP

AFTER SEVERAL THOUSAND DEMONSTRATORS, mainly students, took to the streets in Port Moresby yesterday, prime minister Peter O'neill will address the nation tomorrow night to explain his government's controversial new powers to suspend judges.

Demonstrators gathered at the University of Papua New Guinea before marching to the government offices to hand the prime minister a petition against the Judicial Conduct Act 2012, which passed parliament on Wednesday.

The protesters initially demanded to meet with Mr O'Neill or his deputy Belden Namah, but were instead met behind the government offices by chief secretary Manasupe Zurenuoc.

"Tune in to your radios and (TV) stations at 7 o'clock Sunday. The prime minister Peter O'Neill will address the country on the issues that you are raising, the issue of the judicial conduct bill," he told the crowd.

"My friends, the issues you are raising are no different from those throughout the country. Your government is appreciative of what you are raising, we understand where you are coming from.

"The government will look at your petition, we will look at all the petitions."

UPNG student president Dicky Lao told the crowd the government's decision to pass the law was wrong.

"The law is not in the best interest of the common good of our people," he said.

"We, the student body of PNG are of the view that the (purpose) of the controversial bill is to assert power of the executive arm, the legislature, at the expense of the judiciary."

Opposition to the bill - which is widely seen as an escalation in the government's battle to unseat Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia - has been mounting since it was rushed through parliament this week.

Opposition Leader Dame Carol Kidu has condemned the bill and the manner in which it has passed, while former Chief Justice and Attorney General Sir Arnold Amet has appealed for international intervention.

Somare says PNG needs immediate election

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

SIR MICHAEL SOMARE, who maintains he is Papua New Guinea’s legitimate prime minister, says PNG should immediately hold elections to put an end to the barrage of unconstitutional acts from the rival Peter O’Neill administration.

Yesterday MPs rushed the Judicial Conduct Bill through parliament.  It gives the government sweeping powers over judges.

Sir Michael, in a statement, said it is obvious that Mr O’Neill and his followers are avoiding the judgment of the courts.

He said it is “offensive and absolutely inappropriate to put self interest ahead of the greater interest of PNG”.

Sir Michael says the MPs bring great shame to PNG’s democracy by their constant menace and meddling with the independence of the judiciary.

He says the MPs have shown how they will wield power and the judiciary is only the beginning.

He fears they will now turn their attention on the Electoral Commission with the aim of delaying the election.

Fears that PNG is moving to ‘executive dictatorship’

FORMER MINISTER DAME CAROL KIDU has spoken out strongly against new laws that give the Papua New Guinea government the power to suspend judges, claiming the country could be moving towards an “executive dictatorship”.

The new law was passed yesterday by a vote of 63-7 and gives parliament the power to refer judges to a tribunal which, after investigation, can suspend them.

Dame Carol says the laws focuses total power in the executive arm of government.

"If checks and balances are not working, we're in an executive dictatorship," she said. "It is not in the interests of PNG remaining a truly democratic country.

"We will have judges afraid to toe the line."

She also believes the government will move quickly to oust chief justice Sir Salamo Injia.

"I think that will happen very quickly," she told journalists on Wednesday.

The government has tried three times to have Sir Salamo removed from office since Peter O'Neill became prime minister last August.

Earlier this week deputy prime minister Belden Namah accused two judges other, Nicholas Kirriwom and George Manuhu of "judicial corruption" after an email disclosing their views on political attacks on the supreme court was revealed.

Misleading advertising stuns Transparency International

RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL Papua New Guinea says it is seriously wrong for members of parliament to think about delaying the June elections.

Its statement of concern follows a newspaper advertisement in which the Speaker, Jeffrey Nape, claimed that MPs had the power to delay the poll.

The issue of postponing the election has been floated by a number of MPs in recent weeks with claims the Electoral Commission is not ready.

But Transparency International says this is an abuse of power.

The watchdog group says in his advertisements Mr Nape is misleading the public with incorrect interpretations of the Constitution.

TI head, Lawrence Stephens, said the Constitution is clear that Parliament is accountable to the people at intervals of no more than five years.

He says office holders like Mr Nape must be fully and truthfully advised on the constitution.

Ideology: the missing ingredient in PNG politics

TAVURVUR
TUBUANS AND DUKDUKS BLOG

“Once the rudiments of loyalty are in place, the ambitious have been inclined to work with them to promote their own political advancement, and they have availed themselves of the symbols of loyalty to mobilize popular support for their own personal ends” - Political Loyalty and the Nation-State 

I WAS RECENTLY IN AUSTRALIA on my way back to Papua New Guinea when the Kevin Rudd and Julia Gillard spill over the leadership of the Australian Labour Party was in full swing.

It was a climactic situation in Australia’s politics. Who had the factional support to be Prime Minister? It was captivating politics.

In the end it was a very weary-eyed Gillard who won the ALP caucus vote convincingly, leaving a beaten Rudd to retreat defeated to the backbenches. However, as I watched Kevin Rudd congratulate Julia Gillard on her win, I was struck by his conviction and his belief in the ALP.

Indeed, throughout the days leading up to the ALP caucus vote, those Gillard frontbenchers who publicly voiced their support for Rudd all mentioned or highlighted the fact that they were Labor people – through and through.

Simultaneously, both Rudd and Gillard each repeatedly informed the Australian public that they weren’t just the best Labor leader for prime minister, they were the only leader for Australia. Tony Abbot and the Liberals were always berated in the same breath.

Ideology drives Australian politics, and this in turn creates a degree of political loyalty or at least political symmetry which enables a group of like-minded members of parliament with the same fundamental beliefs and ideas to work hard at delivering a set of policies aimed at garnering the favour of Australian constituents.

This isn’t the case in Papua New Guinea.

It was interesting to read Sir John Kaputin’s comments late last month on the present state of politics in PNG.

Drawing from his 30 years of parliamentary experience Kaputin lashed out at the current political convulsions in Waigani warning that the political issues PNG is facing are not to be blamed on the institutions of the state, but rather, on politicians who are misusing state apparatus out of political ambition and greed.

Kaputin stated:

During my years in parliament, many parliamentary and ministerial practices began to change, supposedly in the name of political stability and progress.  But, as the proliferation of political parties increased, and party platforms became meaningless documents without any commitment and loyalty, leaders of successive governments-of-the-day (prime ministers) realised that they could never count on their followers, whether as party members or members of a coalition.

In order to keep members together, one requires a lot of money – which our leaders do not have in the bank legally but as a result of corruption.  Political horse-trading has become so competitive that, unless one is connected to those who have the financial resources…becoming prime minister is a no-go zone for anyone without a great deal of money.

Kaputin’s view is shared by senior Australian diplomats. As part of the WikiLeaks publication of the Global Intelligence Files from Stratfor, Source CN65 (Bill O’Chee) reveals that one of Australia’s most senior diplomats believed that:

The standard of [PNG's] political class is clearly lower than it was fifteen years ago. The old guys got corrupt and lazy, and outdated. The newer guys have been obsessed with personal wealth, and lack the respect for the offices they hold, which the previous generation had.

It is no secret that when compared to Western contemporaries, and with only a few exceptions, Melanesian politicians are generally not proactive, and certainly not policy active. They are instead coerced by external parties propagated by the individuals’ desire to better off one’s self; thus they are easily influenced by the promises of money and power.

Deputy calls for election delay despite PM

BY JOHNNY BLADES
RADIO NEW ZEALAND INTERNATIONAL

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER Belden Namah continues to press for a delay in Papua New Guinea’s general election, saying parliament is looking at deferring the election for 12 months.

Mr Namah describes it as the best way to allow the O’Neill government to implement its major policies and be re-elected.

But the Electoral Commissioner has rejected claims by Mr Namah and other MPs that the electoral roll is behind schedule, saying the remaining 25% of it should be completed in two months.

In contrast to his deputy’s calls, prime minister Peter O’Neill claims there is no intention by the government to defer elections.

He says that concerns about the rolls should be addressed by an invitation to UN experts to check on them before parliament finalises election arrangements.

Belden trumped? Trawen says election must proceed

THE PAPUA NEW GUINEA electoral commissioner, Andrew Trawen, says the national election is constitutionally bound to be held in June as scheduled.

Mr Trawen said the date of the national election was fixed and could not be changed.

On Sunday, deputy prime minister Belden Namah said there should be a six-month delay in the elections because the government wanted to install an Indian-built biometric voting system to ensure they were “free and fair”.

There was an immediate negative outcry.

Transparency International said it viewed “with the greatest concern” any attempt to delay the election.

Spokesperson Lawrence Stephens said this could not be justified, saying the people got one chance in five years to choose who should govern them and this process should not be stopped by people unwilling to face the electorate.

Opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu said she was uncomfortable with the idea of suspending the elections.

"It is not the political precedent we should be setting, and we have set a lot of new precedents lately," Dame Carol said. "I get nervous (it) will go on longer than six months."

But Andrew Trawen delivered the clinching argument when he said that "to delay or defer the 2012 elections will be unconstitutional."

Referring to Section 105 (1)(a) of the PNG constitution, he said the government had no room to move when it came to suspending elections.

"The 2012 elections program as approved by the Governor-General, Sir Michael Ogio, will proceed as scheduled," he said.

"I will advise the Governor-General to issue the election writs on April 27 for polling to commence on June 23.

"Staff of the commission are professionals in planning, preparing and conducting elections in PNG since 1977 and let's give them the necessary support they need to provide a service called elections," he said.

"I am confident the 2012 elections will not fail and will maintain that the elections will go ahead as planned in accordance with the constitution.”

PNG considers pushing back general election

AAP

PAPUA NEW GUINEAN PARLIAMENTARIANS have raised the prospect of delaying the June 2012 elections.

The government has questioned figures in the electoral commissioner's report, tabled in parliament last week.

The report by Electoral commissioner Andrew Trawen on poll preparations says the electoral roll is about 60% complete, covering 2.4 million of four million eligible voters.

However, leader of government business Moses Maladina told parliament some of the figures were incomplete.

"I have since received independent reports that this is not correct," Mr Maladina said, reading a statement by Waka Goi, an MP charged with reporting to Prime Minister Peter O'Neill on preparedness for the elections.

"The electoral commissioner admitted that there were some pockets within [the Southern, New Guinea Islands and Momase] regions, which were still incomplete."

Mr Maladina also said he had received independent reports that electoral rolls for the nation's 89 open electorates had not been returned to many electorates. Mr Trawen could not be reached for comment.

Former Attorney General Sir Arnold Amet told the chamber he would consider supporting a temporary suspension of the elections if it meant they would be free and fair.

A non-government MP, Sir Arnold told parliament he would support a bipartisan push to suspend the election.

"Forty percent at this point is grossly unacceptable," he said. "It may be in the whole nation's interest that the elections be deferred for an appointed time."

Unparliamentary behaviour needs appropriate response

BY PAUL OATES

WHEN SIR WILLIAM GILBERT wrote his satirical operetta Iolanthe about the British Parliament and the House of Lords, he clearly evidenced his contempt for those who were selected as members of Parliament on a basis other than merit.

In the song Britain really ruled the waves the following lines seem strangely apposite.

The House of Peers made no pretence, to interlectual eminence or scholarship sublime.
The House of Peers throughout the war, did nothing of particular and did it very well.
The House of Peers withholds it’s legislative hand, and noble statesmen do not itch, to interfere with matters which, they do not understand…”

Coming on top of last week’s fisticuffs between PNG Housing Minister Ken Fairweather and Middle Ramu MP Ben Semri outside the main chamber of Parliament arrives a report from the British House of Commons of a similar incident in the Parliamentary bar on the same day.

British Conservative MP Stuart Andrew is planning on pressing charges after Eric Joyce, a Labour MP, allegedly head-butted and punched him.

One wonders if Mr Fairweather will follow suit with his British colleague and press charges as well. It certainly seemed like common assault in the news reports, and clearly this sort of thing isn’t covered under ‘Parliamentary privilege’.

Physical confrontation is not the example that should be being set by elected representatives for the nation to follow.

In a verbal confrontation in the PNG Parliament last year, a threat of physical violence was made on the floor of Parliament by no less a person than then prime minister Michael Somare, when he was reported to have threatened to kill MP (and now deputy prime minister) Sam Basil.

What these actions reveal is a distinct inability to conduct intelligent and objective debate amongst the nation’s elected law makers.

Yet so far there appears to be a deafening silence from other MPs including the prime minister and speaker about the matter.

Nothing also appears to be forthcoming from any public body, law enforcement agency or church leader. One can only wonder why?

Somare 'failed to communicate' says Abal

BY EOIN BLACKWELL
AAP

SIR MICHAEL SOMARE LOST CONTROL of his government in part because he failed to communicate with his back bench, Papua New Guinea's former acting prime minister says.

In his first public comments on the inner workings of the Somare government since it fell on 2 August last year following a backbench coup, Sam Abal says the former government concentrated too much power among its economic ministries.

Mr Abal was Sir Michael's deputy and led his government between mid-March and August while the 75-year-old veteran prime minister was in Singapore undergoing multiple heart operations.

"We didn't give enough attention to the back benches," Mr Abal told AAP.

"I saw that there was a lot of pressure building up over the past nine years [when the Somare government was in office].

"When the opportunity came, the backbenches went for it."

That opportunity saw 70 of PNG's 109 MPs form a bloc behind the current prime minister, 46-year-old Peter O'Neill, and his deputy, Belden Namah, sparking a constitutional crisis over how Sir Michael was removed.

Mr Abal said another major fault [was] the Somare government’s concentration of power in economic ministries, such as treasury and planning departments.

Sir Michael's son, Arthur Somare, was public enterprises minister until his suspension in mid 2010 pending a corruption investigation.

Government MPs, led by Mr O'Neill, have frequently attacked the Somare bloc for its concentration of power during its term and for trying to set up a "dynasty" without naming Arthur Somare.

Mr Abal two days ago became the first MP to join Australian-born opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu on the other side of parliament.

With Dame Carol leaving parliament, Mr Abal has offered himself as the alternate prime minister at the next election.

The majority of Sir Michael's supporters currently occupy the middle benches.

MPs fail to set a good example for the nation

BY PAUL OATES

A disagreement in parliament ended with a brawl outside the debating chamber, leaving Sumkar MP Ken Fairweather nursing a bloody face. It was sparked off when Fairweather interrupted Middle Ramu MP Ben Semri’s speech to parliament [The National]

IS THIS THE SORT OF EXAMPLE Papua New Guinea’s members of parliament should be setting for the nation.

If it is who can blame those people who resort to tribal fighting to settle disputes.

Sori tumas. Oli no tingting gut long tok piksa igo long ol pipol. [Very sorry. This is a poor example and people to think ill of it]

What a pity Mr Fairweather apparently responded in kind and didn't make a complaint to the police.

But perhaps he was only defending himself from attack and may yet do so.

Mr Semri could be found guilty of assault and there seems to be any number of witnesses.

Open ballot; open wallet: campaigning in the Galkope

BY KELA KAPKORA SIL BOLKIN

MY FAMILY AND I departed Port Moresby for Simbu on 4 January 2012 to take our recreational leave.

Kundiawa town was dull and tired under the shadows of Monguma, Tokma, Porol, Dee Pek, Gor and the bulky landscape that surrounds it.

But many men in dirty coats and jeans were seen congregating in lanes and on street corners talking.

I think I know what these men were discussing in their small gatherings. Politics!

Women and children ran in and out of shops to buy goodies like salt, oil and soap. My family and I bought some goodies as well for our village and jumped on a PMV to get home before the usual afternoon showers came.

Upon hearing of our arrival, our tribesman and family members converged at my village home. In the evening, and for the next six weeks we talked about the pandanus kernel season, villages rugby league matches, deaths and burials, bride prices, maternal or fraternal payments (head pay), sanguma, the 2012 national election and many other hot and interesting issues probably are trivial to an outsider.

The 2012 national election discussions were paradoxically tiresome and interesting.

They took us well into the early hours of the morning every time we touched on the subject. Every Galkope I met announced the name of the candidate to whom he or she will give the first preference vote, or even votes two and three.

Then they went on to tell me why the candidate is good leader. The candidate bought them and others boxes of grog, paid school fees, slaughtered pigs during funerals, gave free rides to town, paid bride prices for all his wives, etcetera.

The Galkope tribesmen invited me to campaign houses built for the candidates they supported. I visited a few in the evenings to see what they do at night. To my surprise, these campaign houses were packed to capacity.

Eighty to ninety people frequent these campaign houses each night. All they do is gamble, chew betel nut, watch videos, freely charge mobile phones, have free dinners and occasional sex at the back.

People also congregate and talk politics at the market places and even after Sunday church service.

Once in a while some henchman of the candidate will announce that the candidate is in Australia and will return soon to see them all, when in fact he is in Port Moresby or Lae.

Almost everyone in the Galkope knows who will vote for which candidate. The candidates also know who in the Galkope will vote for them as well as those who will not.

It is no longer a secret - and so frustration and pressure are building in the candidates and, before long, the lid will burst and they will run for the caves and foreign lands again.

I realise that the Galkope seem to forget the immediate past. Such open ballots in previous elections brought fire and brimstone during the post election and people have experienced losing homes, loved ones, property and coffee gardens, but they refuse to accept the PNG constitution, which calls for secret ballots.

The 2012 intending candidates have got it wrong as well. They started campaigning and erected campaign houses three or four years ago. They have handed out cash and free goodies each time they went home and, in so doing, gave bud to a neo-cargo cult.

The people refuse to go to the gardens with their spades anymore. All they want to do is come to the feast, dine and be merry in the campaign houses in the nights and sleep during the day.

Henchman, supporters and even church workers that I talked to did not mention anything about candidates’ character, civic virtue, good governance, party policies, honesty and trustworthiness, educational background, experience or commitment to development.

I conclude that the contemporary Galkope culture will not vote on good character, civic virtue, party policies or qualifications and experience in the coming election.

All the Galkope ask for is enough moneys and bags of goodies. Furthermore, they regard the source of the money that the candidates spew around as a triviality.

The little red book of the chief of staff

It seems Peter O’Neill’s chief of staff BEN MICAH has been reading the wrong books. This press release, issued by Mr Micah, includes sentiments the rest of us don’t like to see emitting from a great democracy like PNG

SPREADING OF MALICIOUS AND MISLEADING INFORMATION is a serious crime and those found to be doing such will be dealt with, says the Prime Minister’s Chief-of-Staff, Ben Micah.

Mr Micah made these comments following recent circulation of anti-government information via text messages on mobile phones, email messages and comments being posted on social network site, Facebook.

“The military, police and the National Intelligence Organisation (NIO) and other pro-government civilian networks are monitoring all attempts to destabilise the Government’s firm control of the country.

“All patriots and law abiding citizens are required to be vigilant. I urge you all to separate rumours from facts and report any suspicious events to the Prime Minister’s office, the deputy PM’s office, police, PNGDF, the Office of the Chief Secretary or your local MP’s office.

“Such misinformation includes any information which you consider to be illegal and detrimental to the peace and good order of your community and subversive to the overall security of our nation,” he said.

A committee has been set up to look into this and to monitor and track down people who have ulterior motives to destabilise the government.

Readers comments, as always, are welcome - KJ

Huggins unleashed: Pressing PNG’s case to the Senate

BY COLIN HUGGINS

I HAD ORIGINALLY SOUGHT to meet Senator Susan Boyce to interest her in a topic dear to all our hearts – Papua New Guinea.

And although the good senator was unavailable for discourse, she being on parliamentary duties elsewhere, I did have a most pleasant half-hour conversation with a staffer in her electoral office, Mark … – now there, I’ve forgotten his surname.

Not being a man to fluff around with woolly small talk, I directed Mark to google PNG Attitude, which he did, and then I steered him to the Comment section, which was read and discussed.

Mark informed me that Senator Sue Boyce worked as a reporter (probably on the Post-Courier) for four or five years in the early 1970's, but left before Independence.

It would appear that the Senator is aware of all that is going on in PNG and her staff know also. Mark and I had a laugh at the fact that there presently seems to be two of everyone - PMs and others.

The Senator and her staff are also aware of the current medical mess of hospitals in PNG and she knows that the border between Australia and PNG is virtually at the mouth of the Fly River.

From my discussion with Mark, I further adduce that the Senator and her staff are fully aware that, since Independence, the governments of Australia - Whitlam, Fraser, Hawke, Keating, Howard, Rudd and now Gillard - have been throwing money "willy-nilly” (Iwas going to write “hanky-panky" to the PNG government with fingers crossed for good usage. Sadly that doesn't appear to be the case.

Finally, from my discussions with the Senator's staff, I believe she knows more than the present Parliamentary Secretary of Pacific Affairs, Hon Richard Marles MP, of what is happening and has happened in TPNG and now PNG.

The Senator will be engaged in Estimates Committee work in Canberra next week(putting those public servants through their paces) and the following week will be in Alice Springs and Darwin.

Mark then forwarded the PNG Attitude link to the Senator's email, with hopefully a follow up from her. Now the Senator has access and knowledge of this blog, as does her staff.

We await developments.