HELA’S GLIMMER OF HOPE IN THE MIDST OF CHAOS

By MURPHY KWUANE

Quite ironical to the much publicised hype of massive financial prosperity, unprecedented economic growth, overwhelming LNG benefits, and consequently highly improved standards of living, Hela has literally shifted in the opposite direction and plummeted back into the dark ages of its forefathers.

There is unmitigated blanket chaos everywhere right across the depth and breadth of Hela from the Hela Opena Puluwape and Mariliwa ranges of Mt Tundaka and Mt Pagapua in the East all the way across the peripheries of Muller Rangers to the fringes of Lake Kopiago and Duna plains; and from the footholds of Mt Bosavi all the way across the Mt Haliago and Mt Gigira midranges of the great Gigira Laitebo custodians ,the Tuguyawinis; following the mighty Tagali all the way up to the Alu Pai lands of Mt Kare, Mt Tere and Mt Dini.

Unwavering warriors armed with high powered military rifles are the order of the day roaming around the villages and communities unhindered, attacking police personnel and military forces alike, terrorising societies, slaughtering fellow humans mercilessly propagating even more tribal warfares and plunging Hela society further and further into the midst of chaos and darkness taking it right into the depths of the mighty Hewaii Falls.  

There is virtually no decisive leadership in the province. The provincial administration seems to be operating out of Waigani with no presences of government authorities on the ground. Almost all provincial public servants, although on Hela provincial administration payroll are roaming around aimlessly like bunch of headless chooks in Port Moresby waiting for their next payday. The administrative function seems to be revolving around Grand Papua Hotel which has somewhat become Governor Agiru’s defecto official residence.

This is not just an article at the hands of a keyboard warrior, this is the reality facing citizens of Hela today. Mothers are giving births in total darkness in the fringes of Hela, and those who are lucky enough to make it to Tari Hospital, aka “Tari International Hospital” as per Agiru’s own highly melodic and yet rather empty speeches are still giving births in candle lights.

Yet we are preaching multibillion kina projects in the likes of Tari International Airport, Hela Super-highway, Hela Super Hydro, Zero City, etc, and yet, literally nothing to show for on the ground for teh hundreds of millions of kina budgeted and earmarked for in the last 15 donkey years since Kutubu, Moran and Manada Oil started flowing and Hides Gas to Electricity project kicked off.

Is this the so called Dutch Disease? Or the Resources Curse? Or is it the fulfilment of the 4th prophecy in the great Oracle of the Gigira Laitebo?

Recently there has been so much hype and publicity surround the so called Hela Hydro Project. This is nothing more than a well-engineered financial scam and cooked up deal with the so call Israeli experts, the LR Group. Already, K9 Million of Helas precious development funds have been trashed down the drain for the most expensive ‘feasibility study’ in the shortest span of time. LR Group has produced the feasibility study in no time warranting a massive international fundraising roadshow in London, New York, Toronto, Tokyo and other centres on a grand quest for capital raising of approximately K1.5 Billion, and further plunging Hela’s future generations into debts.

This literally unfeasible project will plunge Hela’s future generations into financial debt. Their financial models and project financing mechanisms are based on the projected Hela’s revenue from the PNGLNG Project. Agiru is now devising a way to suck those future revenues out of Hela and into the pockets of some multinational financiers who will literally leave Hela high and dry. This project if it goes ahead at all, has no markets to justify its construction. They are assuming Mt Kare Mine expansion, Porgera min expansion, and other resources development projects which will warrant the justification of its critical customer base, however, such assumptions alone is neither sustainable nor feasible. What that eventually means is that, if the project gets funded and executed, it will not produce enough revenue to offset the massive financial loan it has sourced to implement that project, resulting in Hela LNG revenues to be diverted into servicing this loan. What Agiru and his cohorts are interested in is the initial success fees paid by the financiers as well as other side kicks which will enrich themselves. This is the sole driver of this grand scheme.

In the midst of these chaos, rises a rare glimmer of hope, a rare breed and a promising son of Hela in Mr Larry Andagali. In his short and yet more memorable tenure as the Chairman of PNG Power Ltd, he has singlehandedly spearheaded and struck a golden deal which for the last 25 years has been impossible to achieve. Barrick Porgera has finally agreed to make available 4 MW of electricity to light up Hela. Hela will finally light up at no cost to Hela both current and future generations. This is the most practical and most feasible solution we see happening in the next couple of months. All that has to be done is for the Hela provincial government to raise another K10 million – K20 million kina to run the transmission and distribution lines from Margarima to Kopiago and from Komo to Pori and other feeder lines. This is the real deal. This is not fantasy, this is the reality, a project with achievable milestone with the to be delivered as an auxiliary project within the existing generation infrastructure. Agiru and his grand Hela Hydro money milking scheme can go to hell as Hela no longer needs his project. Thank you Maya Larry Andagali for your decisive vision and leadership!