MINISTERS SWORN IN

Papua New Guinea's new Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has announced the line-up of his new caretaker government.
Eleven new ministers were sworn in by the Governor-General at a ceremony at Government House in PNG's capital, Port Moresby.

The central figures in Tuesday's successful plot to overthrow the government of Sir Michael Somare have been rewarded with senior positions.

Mr O'Neill was elected as PNG's new prime minister on Tuesday afternoon after disgruntled government MPs joined forces with the Opposition to have the prime minister's office declared vacant.

The former opposition leader, Belden Namah, is now the deputy prime minister.

Other portfolios were not announced but also sworn in were the former Foreign Affairs Minister Don Polye and former Petroleum Minister William Duma.

Also in the line-up was former Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta.

Afterwards, the new Prime Minister Peter O'Neill said his government would not be initiating any major new policies before next year's national election.


'Illegal government'
Earlier, PNG's former acting Prime Minister Sam Abal said the shock appointment of the new prime minister was illegal.

When parliament resumed on Tuesday afternoon, several government MPs walked out with the Opposition and sat on their side of the house.

With bolstered numbers, Opposition leader Belden Namah successfully moved to have the prime minister's office declared vacant because of the ongoing absence of Sir Michael Somare due to ill health.

Peter O'Neill was nominated and then installed as the new prime minister in a 70-24 vote.

But Sam Abal, who was the acting Prime Minister until Tuesday, said there was no legal documentation to prove there was a vacancy.

In a statement he said the speaker of parliament "hijacked the process" and "committed an illegal act".

Mr Abal says he will challenge the legality of the appointment in court.

Meanwhile, Mr O'Neill says a caretaker government should be put in place on Wednesday.


Key appointments

Eleven of the central players involved in the leadership swap are expected to be rewarded with key portfolios.
Former Opposition leader Belden Namah has been appointed deputy prime minister.
William Duma, who defected to the Opposition, and former highlands strongman Don Polye are also expected to get key posts. The other appointments are yet to be announced.


Discontent

The director of PNG's Institute of National Affairs, Paul Barker, has told Asia Pacific frustration had been building among the nation's MPs.

"There had been a lot of discontent in the Opposition and some government members had been looking for a way for some time to... show that they wanted change," he said.

"Parliamentarians were frustrated by, among other things, the very limited amount of time that they have had over the last year or so actually in parliamentary sessions."

Peter O'Neill had only been works minister for a short time, Mr Barker said.

"For a longer period of time of late, he was the treasury and finance minister, where he seemed to be doing a good job."

Mr O'Neill was one of the key drivers of a localised sovereign wealth fund, which aims to ensure all revenues from the mining and gas boom are saved for future generations in a transparent way.

Mr Barker said department staff had found Mr O'Neill "good to work with".

"But going back, he is from the Southern Highlands province, his mother is from Southern Highlands, his father was 'Kiap' or an old District Officer from... Australia. He's certainly an able, a determined, bright individual, and an astute politician, and certainly ambitious."

Mr O'Neill was the subject a corruption inquiry in the late 1990s that investigated one of his businesses.

No charges were laid and Mr O'Neill denied allegations he acted illegally.

Re-election hopes
Mr Barker said Mr O'Neill only had a short time to prove to the PNG public that he is the right person to lead the country ahead of the next election.

"Well, they're going to have office, effectively, for only eight months.

"If they want to be able to secure office next year, they've got to demonstrate that they can run an effective government, hopefully a transparent government that focuses on what the public really is crying out for.

"The public has been upset over the last period of time because they've been hearing about the high growth rate, the good government revenue, and yet they're not seeing improvements in their lives in terms of roads and services.

"So if this current government in their short term can demonstrate they can actually move a few things in the positive direction, they will get brownie points for that, and it'll probably help them during the next election.

"But if they are seen to be doing what some people in the public have perceived to be prevalent in recent months - which is some members abusing the district or electoral funds and in particular the development budget - then that will probably undermine their prospects at the next election.

-Radio Australia

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