Rogue cops cost K500m

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

By JUNIOR UKAHA
ILLEGAL and improper conduct of police personnel has resulted in claims against the state totalling about K500 million, acting Police Commissioner Tom Kulunga said yesterday.
He made the revelation during the launching of a new pocket-size booklet called the “Guide for police conduct and behaviour”.
“We have been (often) taken to court because of our actions,” he said at the police headquarters in Port Moresby.
He said the amount of claims was excessive for a public organisation with just under 5,000 personnel.
“For the 11-month period from Jan 1, 2010, to Nov 30, 2010, we saw 20 dismissals, 42 demotions and two transfers as a result of sanctions issued for misconduct-related offences,” Kulunga said.
“There were 325 serious disciplinary offence reports and 27 minor disciplinary offence reports for that period.”
Kulunga’s comments came as two senior police officers face charges in court in relation to assaults on their wives.
Of the two officers under investigation for assaulting their wives, police said they had not arrested Simon Bernard.
Director international affairs division Supt Tony Duwang said Bernard was dismissed from the force and had been on the run since.
Duwang said criminal charges would be laid once he was caught.
He said Bernard was last spotted in Kimbe, West New Britain, but they had yet to apprehend him.
He said Chris Tamari, a police inspector who abused his wife Artkeria Painap, would be dealt with as soon his files were ready.
Kulunga said most of the offences committed by the police officers related to the assault and ill-treatment of members of the public, the very people they had sworn to protect.
The guide for police conduct and behaviour was put together by the internal affairs division.
“This booklet basically provides a general guide for police officers on duty to ensure human rights laws and humanitarian principles are upheld under any and all circumstances,” he said.
Kim Gordon-Bates, head of mission of the International Committee of Red Cross, whose organisation helped publish the booklet, said it was created to improve the image and credibility of the police force to maintain human dignity and the rights of all people.
He said police officers had sworn an oath to serve and protect their communities and must be efficient, impartial, apolitical, and accountable for the benefit of society.
Deputy police commissioner (operations) Fred Yakasa said the booklet did not replace the police code of ethics but enforced it in a simplified way.

Aust helps to improve PNG labor climate

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

AUSTRALIA is helping to improve the business environment in Papua New Guinea by strengthening the Department of Labour and Industrial Relations (DLIR).
Australia will provide K1.7 million through AusAID’s economic and public sector programme to build a labour market information system and provide structured training and expert advice for staff in the department.
Acting head of AusAID in PNG Dave Vosen said the DLIR had an important role to play in creating the right environment for business to grow in PNG.
“The department enforces fair and equitable terms and conditions of employment and ensures that people are working in a safe and healthy environment.
“Having the right environment for business to expand in PNG will help create jobs and better livelihoods for the citizens of PNG,” Vosen said.
Department secretary George Vaso said the assistance would allow the department to better develop and manage its critical staff resources and provide more user-friendly regulatory systems that would help increase employment and business opportunities in PNG.
“This support will lead to the department being able to provide more accurate and up-to-date labour market data and better advice to the government of PNG for planning and development of policies for direct service delivery to the people of PNG,” Vaso said.
“The support will help us accurately forecast labour trends to assist other GoPNG agencies with improving planning for educational and vocational needs to meet private sector requirements for employment.”
AusAID’s economic and public sector programme will provide about K20 million in support of key PNG government agencies in 2011-12

Drastic time called for drastic measures

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

AS a resident of Lae for past eight years, it was sad and sickening to see the lawlessness at Eriku and market going on for a long time without any intervention from the provincial government and police.
The people’s cries were highlighted in the media almost every day but they fell on our leaders’ deaf ears.
The victims were not only Morobeans but highlanders and others as well.
As far as I can remember, people have been calling to the government to step in when the problems started several years ago.
The petty crimes, harassment and rapes were not limited only to Eriku, market and bus stops but in other parts of Lae too.
Whenever there was a national issue, Morobe Governor Luther Wenge would be up there and using the Morobe provincial funds on those issues that did not benefit his own people while the poor Menyamyans were still paying more than K1,000 for hiring a vehicle to access basic services in Lae.
It was the same with the Kabwums, Wains, Watuts, Mark­hams, etc.
It is ironic Morobeans reside in squatters outside the city while outsiders are occupying the main centre.
Morobeans, fed up with lawlessness, decided to stand up and do whatever possible to make the national and provincial governments listen to their cries.
It was a sad state of affairs for them to do what they did.
At the end of the day, if I were the governor, I would have been ashamed for my actions, keep my mouth shut and look for ways to bring tangible development and implement strategies that will uphold the laws of the country.
Hita
Via email

Tiensten faces three charges

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

By SAMUEL RAITANO
MEMBER for Pomio Paul Tiensten has been charged with three offences.
Police have charged him with one count each of conspiracy to defraud the state, abuse of office and misappropriation.
The charges relate to K10 million airfreight subsidies belonging to the state.
Tiensten is alleged to have committed the offences while he was the national planning minister in the Somare-Abal government.
Tiensten was expected to make his first appearance in court yesterday but did not turn up.
Tiensten’s lawyer, Arnold Amet Jnr, was at the Waigani District Court but had to leave because the matter was not listed for hearing and the police brief had not been made available to the court.
Although it was expected that Tiensten would have appeared in court yesterday, his name was not on the court list as well.
Police sources said the matter did not get to the court registry as expected yesterday because there were certain procedural matters that had to be taken care of first.
Tiensten is expected to be in court today in order for the court to read him the charges and to set bail conditions for him.
Tiensten arrived from Australia on Monday, and was arrested and charged by the Task Force Sweep team at the Jackson International Airport.
He was released on a K5,000 bail later that day

Confident of a resolution

Source: The National, Mondy 14th November 2011

THERE was really no need to delay a decision on the Supreme Court reference by the East Sepik provincial government.
In a sense, the delay by the Supreme Court encouraged the executive government to be creative. All the issues were known. Whether or not parliament contravened the Constitution on Aug 2 when it elected Peter O’Neill as prime minister requires no elaborate research. All the arguments for or against in this case have been presented to the court. To our mind, and without incurring the wrath of the court, the matter needed urgent expediting.
Of course, it warranted careful deliberation but it also demanded urgent treatment. When the court decided to defer judgment to Dec 9, it gave the government too much time to be creative. That said, the creativity of government is, to our mind, extreme.
Some may say the government has descended into chaos. Others may say the government has lost the plot and become totally irresponsible.
Still, some may say a constitutional crisis has been triggered.
We will let history be the judge of that. What we can say is that the executive government, by its decision last Thursday, has incurred contempt of the court on this very important matter currently pending before the courts.
We like to think that the government decision was deliberate and, whatever the merits of its arguments, the fact that it has come at this particular time can be seen as an attempt to pervert the cause of justice. However reasonable the case might be against the chief justice, we see the charges as being of an administrative nature and one that did not warrant the attention of the National Execu­tive Council.
That it decided to take carriage of the matter is its own ill-advised decision and might well turn out to be its undoing in the fullness of time.
Unfortunately, in one fell swoop, all the gains of the O’Neill-Namah government has been laid to waste.  And that, really, is tragic. Nobody, including the chief justice, is above the law. The charges brought against him must see light of day soon. But it is a matter that the National Judicial Services Committee, and even the National and Supreme Court, can attend to. It was quite irresponsible and insensitive of cabinet to take carriage of the matter.
When it did that it violated, it would seem, a fundamental principle of democracy that is the independence of the three arms of government – judiciary, parliament and cabinet. It is particularly sensitive where the judiciary is concerned because the courts are also the custodians of the supreme law – the Constitution. When you touch the courts, inadvertently, you touch the Constitution. That is something every government must be loathe to do.
We call on the prime minister to suspend or rescind the decision of the NEC. It is the most sensible thing to do at the moment.
At the same time, we commend the responsible manner in which the disciplined services have approached this episode.
The police have been rational even if a little hesitant. They may well arrest the deputy prime minister and the attorney-general but, if the decision can be rescinded, Justice Bernard Sakora’s orders might well be altered.
The military have taken a keen interest but have kept well within their barracks. We commend rank and
file for that.
The Correctional Services has maintained stability in jails around the country.
In the end, however, the international community may deride PNG. While they might say a constitutional crisis has been triggered, the manner in which this country greeted the government action, and the calm and rationale approach the courts have taken on this, is one more evidence that our democracy is robust; that our government is truly democratic and that our people are mature.
In the end, we are extremely confident that the government and the courts will resolve this misunderstanding in an expedient manner and restore normalcy and confidence.
This nation shall long endure and may God bless Papua New Guinea

Lae bans grog

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

By PISAI GUMAR
A THREE-month liquor ban will be imposed in Lae city from tomorrow.
Documents to validate the ban, announced last week by Morobe Governor Luther Wenge, had been signed.
The three-month ban will be imposed in the city and parts of the Huon Gulf and Nawaeb districts.
It comes after Morobeans took to the streets in protest against street vendors.
The provincial executive council moved to impose the ban after declaring Lae a fighting zone. The ban will be effective until Jan 31.“By virtue of powers conferred by section 27 of the Liquor Licensing Act (2003), Wenge imposed a liquor ban on all storekeeper licences on schedule A, except schedule B,” liquor licensing chairman Bill Singilong said.
Schedule A included all take-away stores and retailers in Lae district, Lae urban, Ahi, Labuta, Wampar and Salamaua local level government areas.
Schedule B included taverns, limited hotels, publican, restaurants, clubs and distributors.
“Schedule B is instructed to trade strictly during trading hours,” Singilong said.
Anyone found trading through the back door will lose their licences.
Meanwhile, Lae police metropolitan comman­der Supt Nema Mondiai urged people, especially youths, to do away with the illegal brewing of steam, coffee candy, trumpet flower drink and drugs.
“Homebrew and drugs are illegal and police will not tolerate people found intoxicated in public places,” Mondiai said.
Police patrols had been strategically positioned along the Miles, Kamkumung, Busu Road towards Bumayong and Tent Siti, Situm and Gobadik areas.
“The situation is back to normal and people should not fear police because police are here to enforce law, provide security and protect law-abiding citizens. However, for those who intend to break laws, the full force of the law will deal severely with them,” Mondiai said.
He assured the provincial education board
that police would provide security at various schools that were affected by the violence to ensure students continued classes

Pastor charged with stealing K100,000

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

By JACOB POK
A PASTOR in the highlands has been arrested and charged with misappropriating K100,000 belonging to the state.
Pr Michael Kui, 35, of Kere­kam village, central Hagen, Western Highlands, was arrested by the government’s task force sweep team after investigations showed that the funds he received from the National Planning and Monitoring Department were not used for their intended purposes.
The task force investigations were carried out following allegations of fraud against church officials of Kerekam Island Cooperative Society in Mt Hagen.
It was alleged that Kui applied on behalf of the society to the department to support a small-scale logging and marketing venture the society wanted to undertake.
The proposal was approved early last year and a cheque deposited by the society into their ANZ Bank account in Mt Hagen on April 26 last year.
However, investigations showed the funds were spent on items not consistent with the proposed projects.
The investigators found that there was sufficient evidence of misappropriation.
Kui was interviewed and formally charged with misappropriating K100,000.
He was detained at the Mt Hagen police station cells but later released on bail.
Meanwhile, a former National Planning and Monitoring senior officer who allegedly conspired with Kui was arrested yesterday
William Sent, a former first assistant secretary in the infrastructure and economic division of the department, was charged with misappropriation.
Sent was one of the senior officers suspended in August for allegedly conspiring with Kui and benefited as a director of Kerekam Island Cooperative Society

Polye: Expect balanced budget

Source: The National, Thursday 17th November 2011

By ISAAC NICHOLAS
THE 2012 Budget to be handed down next Tuesday will be a balanced one, Treasury and Finance Minister Don Polye said yesterday.
“This government is committed to improving transparency on how we collect money from taxpayers and then spend it to improve development outcomes,” he said.
Polye said he would present a responsible Budget.
“I will not go into the details now, but all can be assured that it will be a budget in line with the economic uncertainty created by world markets, the strong growth and inflationary pressures we face, and the urgent and critical development needs of our people.
“The 2012 Budget will be a balanced budget – and this is necessary given the inflationary pressures in our economy.”
Polye said the 2012 Budget would be framed on sharing the wealth and empowering the people.
“It will focused on delivering the government’s commitments to increasing funding for key Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP) enablers such as education, health, infrastructure, land and law and justice, and ensuring that all public monies are spent well.”
He said the 2012 Budget would cater for a number of key government policies, such as funding tuition free education, increased support for small and medium enterprises to participate and contribute to the growth and development of PNG economy, and maintenance of key transport infrastructure, such as Highlands
Highway and major sea ports.
Polye said the government would initiate critical improvements in public finance management, including better integration of the recurrent and development budget, medium term planning, focusing on development priorities as outlined in the MTDP (2011-15), and reintroduce project cycle

Upper Lagaip people cry for better road

Source: yutok, Post Courier, November 16, 2011

THE road between Laiagam and Kandep, leading to the home of Don Polye the Minister for Finance is really in a bad stage.Even the mighty Land Cruisers are struggling to travel on the road.

The poor people in the rural areas of Upper Lagaip River and Kandep district are suffering badly when they use the road to market goods or go to the hospital and other services at Wabag or the Porgera towns.The colonially built road and bridges have completely worn out and people of the areas are confused who will step in to fix them.The road is part of the Highlands Highway leading to Kandep and feeder roads built to Southern Highlands or upper Mendi.

There are thousands of people using this road but it is becoming inaccessible and most of them are badly affected.Mothers in labour and sick childrens are dying at homes, garden produce are rotting away and small business are suffering.Mr Polye’s plan to build a road has not eventuated and the people’s rights to service and use of good roads is denied. When will we enjoy good roads and bridges in the rural areas where the bulk of the population are?

Chief Mukali
Upper Lagaip

Budget set for Tuesday

Source: Post Courier, November 16, 2011

THE 2012 Budget to be handed down next Tuesday in Parliament will strike a balance between three major pulling forces affecting the national economy.
This is the commitment of Finance and Treasury Minister Don Polye who yesterday said the balance would ease pressure between uncertainty on the world market, inflation and both urgent and critical development expenditure.
“It will be a balanced budget, focused on delivering the Government’s commitments to increasing funding for key Medium Term Development Plan (MTDP) enablers such as education, health, infrastructure, land and law and justice, and ensuring that all public monies are spent well,” Mr Polye said.
Mr Polye said he had given indications of the 2012 budget scenario in an address to the business community at the end of September, emphasising PNG’s commitment to directly dealing with the economic challenges confronting the country.
“You are the key to generating jobs and opportunities for the people of PNG and our Government looks forward to working closely with you,” Mr Polye said.
Mr Polye said this when explaining the Government’s position in relation to handing down its 2012 budget following a media article claiming lack of information on its next strategy.
Mr Polye said the 2012 budget strategy was easily accessible on the department’s web site.
He said it would be framed to meet the social aspirations of the people in a responsible manner, sharing wealth and empowering the people.
He said key policies such as funding tuition, free education, increased support for small and medium enterprises and maintenance of key transport infrastructure such as Highlands highway and major sea ports were Government priority.
He said the 2012 general elections would also be funded.
“The Government will meet these commitments while maintaining a balanced budget,” he emphasised.
He said the Government would also initiate critical improvements in public finance management, better integration of the recurrent and development budget, medium term planning, focusing on development priorities as outlined in the MTDP (2011-2015), and reintroduce project cycle.
”The Government will continue with key public sector reforms to improve efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery by investing in agencies which are delivering outcomes and benefits, and consolidate and avoid duplication of function to reduce wastage,” he said.
“The Government will also focus on renewing budget discipline where only fully costed, developed proposal will be considered.”
Mr Polye warned of inflation which was currently at 8.4 per cent.
He added that “without a balanced budget inflation was likely to increase sparking increases in interest rates and cuts in the availability of credits for families and businesses in PNG.”