'No Prosecution', 'Keep The Loot' and 'Hamamas Payments':
By NEC Insider The reason we have intolerable corruption in PNG is that hardly any of our high level white collar thieves get caught, much less prosecuted, much less convicted, much less punished. The classic example is the 1999 National Providence Fund scandal. Peter O'Neill, along with his K2.8 million theft friend Jimmy Maladina, and co-conspirator Herman Leahy, were identified in the NPF government inquiry as breaking the law.
Their corruption was bad enough that it couldn't be ignored. There HAD to be a prosecution, made all the more possible by the fact that fairly honest Mekere Morauta was PM at the time. Yet O'Neill, Maladina and Leahy still managed to squirm out of their court cases, even though the evidence for their conviction was as clear as day and posted for years on the internet for all to see. Not only did they get off the hook, they got to keep their stolen money too! Maybe letting them keep what they stole was considered proper compensation to make up for all that extra money the Post Courier itself made during the time it was running its "Jimmy come home" campaign, carried out while Jimmy Maladina was hiding out in Australia.
All this sounds mighty attractive. Steal a few million and all you'll have to do for it is endure a day or two of humiliating spotlights in the national media, then maybe some legal expenses later on. While the legal proceedings are going on and the secrets of your scam are being exposed to the world, you can go on vacation at the MRDC resort in Fiji so you don't have to listen to any of it. After things cool down, you can come back, pay some money to the police... or the prosecuting lawyer... or the judge, and earn your treasured NOT GUILTY diploma, thus allowing you to resume your normal (but richer) life. Paul Paraka. You've heard that name, haven't you? You think he's got worries? Yeah, everyone's screaming about the K71.8 million payment in return for virtually no work. But haven't you noticed? Everyone (probably even YOU!) completely forgot (if they ever knew) about the hundreds of millions of kina he stole during a 10 year spree that was revealed in the long hidden Department of Finance inquiry. Even the most corrupt Australian politician doesn't dream of stealing hundreds of millions, or even tens of millions of Aussie dollars.
They risk a guaranteed prison sentence by stealing in the very low millions, or even less cuz that's all it is possible to steal in a system full of checks and balances. PNG fortunately is not encumbered by that stuff. Consider all the above and now you see why PNG is truly the grand land of opportunity. Even beter than Australia! PNG is DA PLES where a little strategic planning will make you rich! Ask Paraka. Or Tientsen. Or Chan. Or Skate. Or Somare. Or Jeffrey Nape. Or Ipatas. Or Agiru. Or hundreds of other former MPs. Neither Paraka's pre-O'Neill scam nor the recent scam will probably result in a prosecution. Sam Koim is staying completely away from this red hot chili pepper and why not? He can continue his good work in other directions and catch the small fry, still get his pay and his praise without the headaches - including the risk a bullet in the head that Paraka's loyal thugs are fully capable of delivering. In a civilised, educated society the volume of public outcry that would be triggered by something like the Paraka scandal would make our Unitech students sound like babies quietly whimpering.
The lack of public pressure here in PNG encourages O'Neill to keep Paraka happy and enjoy his added wealth. In turn, Paraka has no reason to fight back at O'Neill and divulge what he knows about ol Peter's own massive corruption. The family keeps its secrets and stays happy. Paraka's money won't have to be returned. He won't be prosecuted. He won't go to prison. That's the Peter O'Steal solution to corruption scandals whenever they involve his friends or even his most threatening foes. Paul Tientsen! Man, if there was ever a chronically corrupt National Planning Minister, Paul was DA MAN! Scams right and left, all bringing big bucks into his overseas accounts. People was screamin about it at the time even within the National Planning Office but Paul wasn't worried otherwise he would have stopped. Maybe he ended up getting prosecuted because he said something that made O'Neill mad or something? It doesn't matter.
All the corrupt deals he managed over several years resulted in prosecution for only ONE count of embezzlement. That doesn't mean much of a jail sentence in PNG, does it? In China, corruption of the level Paul Tientsen achieved would have earned a death sentence. Paul thanks God he was not born Pal Tienzhen. So there you go. Even those with the fewest friends at the top don't pay much penalty for their thievery. After they finish their short prison sentence (presumably served in the infamous 'VIP' wing of Bomana, where all comforts, including ladies of the night, are available), they can go back to counting their stolen money. That brings us to the mighty Unitech fiasco, one of the biggest corruption blow-ups of recent years. It all happened because O'Neill wanted to protect his corrupt mentor Philip Stagg and ol buddy ol pal corrupt Ralph Saulep. O'Neill had no problem whatsoever letting 2 years of grief envelop the entire university, causing untold unhappiness for students, staff, and one foreign born vice chancellor, all because Peter O'Neill believes that friendship should be thicker than legalities.
Both Stagg and Saulep committed crimes, no doubt about that. Their conviction on anything would have legally resulted in their removal from the Unitech Council and the end of Unitech Saga. But no, no, NO! Our Peter won't have it - it would hurt his friends! While it's true we should admire Peter O'Steal's faithful loyalty to his old friends, even Peter himself is beginning to realise that the result can be a lot of unwanted stress for him. Whats he gonna do? First thing is blame everyone else but his friends for the problem. Thus, as Judge Mark Sevua wryly noted, the foreign born vice chancellor Albert Schram became the favourite scapegoat for all Unitech's problems and Peter joined in the finger pointing. Unfortunately for Peter, in the Unitech case there were too many witnesses that Stagg and Saulep, not Schram, were the problem. Even worse, those witnesses were more empowered to speak out than the usual witnesses to corruption in our country. Toss in the student factor - thousands of young energetic people willing to take personal risks, including the termination of the school year, to speak out in the hopes of achieving some good - and Peter O'Steal finally met his match! Now the final chapter of Unitech Saga unfolds.
It seems Peter is running out of tricks to protect his friends and has been entangled himself by the legal cords Ralph Saulep has wrapped around everyone who potentially could straighten out the mess. The result is that dark vadars Stagg and Saulep, two of the more despicable and dishonest people you're ever likely to meat, are back in charge of Unitech heading the resurrected old council! Normally Peter would be okay with that result, but not when it is accompanied by the uproar he's now having to suffer through. Peter has a dilemma. Old friends, especially old drinking mates, ALWAYS come first in Peter O'Steal's book. But in the case of Unitech, continuing to protect his friends now carry serious political cost for poor Peter, perhaps even his seat as prime minister. This was true even though it seems most Unitech students don't realise that Stagg and Saulep are back to being their bosses. Will there be an even bigger uproar? If so, this can't go on. What oh what will solve the problem? Simple.
Pay off da bastards! It's time for Peter O'Deal to make his grand entrance. In the same way as Paul Paraka was essentially paid off to stop bothering the government, so too will Peter O'Deal now pay off buddies Stagg and Saulep to give up the fight. It will be a nice fat cash payment, maybe in the millions and possibly even approved by the NEC. Compensate poor Stagg and Saulep for all the humiliation and grief they suffered (will there also be a compensation cheque for VC Schram? Not likely!!). Pay them off as the Melanesian way of doing the right thing and making everyone friends again. Pay them off, but don't use the word BRIBE to describe it! And that, my friends, is the simple explanation of why our country is drowning in corruption.
Not only are the 3 favourite problem solving tools of the legendary Peter O'Neill applied on a daily basis to help the fat cats in our society, O'Steal isn't the only one to use the tools and most of us have never figured out that this is a purposeful game. As others have already said, it is the amazing ability of the students at Unitech to stand up to the Prime Minister and all his emissaries that gives us any hope at all. Now UPNG students are getting mobilised against the continuance of business as usual at our universities. You and I have never stood up against corruption the way they're standing up. That's why the students deserve our everlasting gratitude as well as our fervent hope that they will continue to fight the good fight. To save Papua New Guinea.
Their corruption was bad enough that it couldn't be ignored. There HAD to be a prosecution, made all the more possible by the fact that fairly honest Mekere Morauta was PM at the time. Yet O'Neill, Maladina and Leahy still managed to squirm out of their court cases, even though the evidence for their conviction was as clear as day and posted for years on the internet for all to see. Not only did they get off the hook, they got to keep their stolen money too! Maybe letting them keep what they stole was considered proper compensation to make up for all that extra money the Post Courier itself made during the time it was running its "Jimmy come home" campaign, carried out while Jimmy Maladina was hiding out in Australia.
All this sounds mighty attractive. Steal a few million and all you'll have to do for it is endure a day or two of humiliating spotlights in the national media, then maybe some legal expenses later on. While the legal proceedings are going on and the secrets of your scam are being exposed to the world, you can go on vacation at the MRDC resort in Fiji so you don't have to listen to any of it. After things cool down, you can come back, pay some money to the police... or the prosecuting lawyer... or the judge, and earn your treasured NOT GUILTY diploma, thus allowing you to resume your normal (but richer) life. Paul Paraka. You've heard that name, haven't you? You think he's got worries? Yeah, everyone's screaming about the K71.8 million payment in return for virtually no work. But haven't you noticed? Everyone (probably even YOU!) completely forgot (if they ever knew) about the hundreds of millions of kina he stole during a 10 year spree that was revealed in the long hidden Department of Finance inquiry. Even the most corrupt Australian politician doesn't dream of stealing hundreds of millions, or even tens of millions of Aussie dollars.
They risk a guaranteed prison sentence by stealing in the very low millions, or even less cuz that's all it is possible to steal in a system full of checks and balances. PNG fortunately is not encumbered by that stuff. Consider all the above and now you see why PNG is truly the grand land of opportunity. Even beter than Australia! PNG is DA PLES where a little strategic planning will make you rich! Ask Paraka. Or Tientsen. Or Chan. Or Skate. Or Somare. Or Jeffrey Nape. Or Ipatas. Or Agiru. Or hundreds of other former MPs. Neither Paraka's pre-O'Neill scam nor the recent scam will probably result in a prosecution. Sam Koim is staying completely away from this red hot chili pepper and why not? He can continue his good work in other directions and catch the small fry, still get his pay and his praise without the headaches - including the risk a bullet in the head that Paraka's loyal thugs are fully capable of delivering. In a civilised, educated society the volume of public outcry that would be triggered by something like the Paraka scandal would make our Unitech students sound like babies quietly whimpering.
The lack of public pressure here in PNG encourages O'Neill to keep Paraka happy and enjoy his added wealth. In turn, Paraka has no reason to fight back at O'Neill and divulge what he knows about ol Peter's own massive corruption. The family keeps its secrets and stays happy. Paraka's money won't have to be returned. He won't be prosecuted. He won't go to prison. That's the Peter O'Steal solution to corruption scandals whenever they involve his friends or even his most threatening foes. Paul Tientsen! Man, if there was ever a chronically corrupt National Planning Minister, Paul was DA MAN! Scams right and left, all bringing big bucks into his overseas accounts. People was screamin about it at the time even within the National Planning Office but Paul wasn't worried otherwise he would have stopped. Maybe he ended up getting prosecuted because he said something that made O'Neill mad or something? It doesn't matter.
All the corrupt deals he managed over several years resulted in prosecution for only ONE count of embezzlement. That doesn't mean much of a jail sentence in PNG, does it? In China, corruption of the level Paul Tientsen achieved would have earned a death sentence. Paul thanks God he was not born Pal Tienzhen. So there you go. Even those with the fewest friends at the top don't pay much penalty for their thievery. After they finish their short prison sentence (presumably served in the infamous 'VIP' wing of Bomana, where all comforts, including ladies of the night, are available), they can go back to counting their stolen money. That brings us to the mighty Unitech fiasco, one of the biggest corruption blow-ups of recent years. It all happened because O'Neill wanted to protect his corrupt mentor Philip Stagg and ol buddy ol pal corrupt Ralph Saulep. O'Neill had no problem whatsoever letting 2 years of grief envelop the entire university, causing untold unhappiness for students, staff, and one foreign born vice chancellor, all because Peter O'Neill believes that friendship should be thicker than legalities.
Both Stagg and Saulep committed crimes, no doubt about that. Their conviction on anything would have legally resulted in their removal from the Unitech Council and the end of Unitech Saga. But no, no, NO! Our Peter won't have it - it would hurt his friends! While it's true we should admire Peter O'Steal's faithful loyalty to his old friends, even Peter himself is beginning to realise that the result can be a lot of unwanted stress for him. Whats he gonna do? First thing is blame everyone else but his friends for the problem. Thus, as Judge Mark Sevua wryly noted, the foreign born vice chancellor Albert Schram became the favourite scapegoat for all Unitech's problems and Peter joined in the finger pointing. Unfortunately for Peter, in the Unitech case there were too many witnesses that Stagg and Saulep, not Schram, were the problem. Even worse, those witnesses were more empowered to speak out than the usual witnesses to corruption in our country. Toss in the student factor - thousands of young energetic people willing to take personal risks, including the termination of the school year, to speak out in the hopes of achieving some good - and Peter O'Steal finally met his match! Now the final chapter of Unitech Saga unfolds.
It seems Peter is running out of tricks to protect his friends and has been entangled himself by the legal cords Ralph Saulep has wrapped around everyone who potentially could straighten out the mess. The result is that dark vadars Stagg and Saulep, two of the more despicable and dishonest people you're ever likely to meat, are back in charge of Unitech heading the resurrected old council! Normally Peter would be okay with that result, but not when it is accompanied by the uproar he's now having to suffer through. Peter has a dilemma. Old friends, especially old drinking mates, ALWAYS come first in Peter O'Steal's book. But in the case of Unitech, continuing to protect his friends now carry serious political cost for poor Peter, perhaps even his seat as prime minister. This was true even though it seems most Unitech students don't realise that Stagg and Saulep are back to being their bosses. Will there be an even bigger uproar? If so, this can't go on. What oh what will solve the problem? Simple.
Pay off da bastards! It's time for Peter O'Deal to make his grand entrance. In the same way as Paul Paraka was essentially paid off to stop bothering the government, so too will Peter O'Deal now pay off buddies Stagg and Saulep to give up the fight. It will be a nice fat cash payment, maybe in the millions and possibly even approved by the NEC. Compensate poor Stagg and Saulep for all the humiliation and grief they suffered (will there also be a compensation cheque for VC Schram? Not likely!!). Pay them off as the Melanesian way of doing the right thing and making everyone friends again. Pay them off, but don't use the word BRIBE to describe it! And that, my friends, is the simple explanation of why our country is drowning in corruption.
Not only are the 3 favourite problem solving tools of the legendary Peter O'Neill applied on a daily basis to help the fat cats in our society, O'Steal isn't the only one to use the tools and most of us have never figured out that this is a purposeful game. As others have already said, it is the amazing ability of the students at Unitech to stand up to the Prime Minister and all his emissaries that gives us any hope at all. Now UPNG students are getting mobilised against the continuance of business as usual at our universities. You and I have never stood up against corruption the way they're standing up. That's why the students deserve our everlasting gratitude as well as our fervent hope that they will continue to fight the good fight. To save Papua New Guinea.
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