"HAND IN THE TILL."


by PETER BALOS 

1. Introduction.

Reality on the ground speaks volume that for the last twenty-five years, nothing much had been selflessly done to improve the livelihood of our KA people. This short piece aims to illuminate what had been and is apparently happening to our people's money.

2. What belongs to the MP.

People of KA perhaps want to know how much their MP earns every fortnight and rightfully so as voters and tax payers. All MPs (excluding PM, Speaker, DPM, OL, Ministers and Governors) earned an annual base salary of 106 266.71 by 2016, that was, K4 087.18 every fortnight. The annual base salary of a Government Minister including Mr. Pundari by then was K211 773.71, that was, K8 145.14 every fortnight. For the five years starting from 2012 to 2017 is well above K1.05m (K1 050 000.00). The moral of such exorbitant increment still remains nix nationwide.

3. What belongs to the people.

3.1 District Support Grant (DSG).

In each year, KA receives a constitutional grant of at least K500 000.00 known as District Support Grant (DSG). There are strict guidelines attached to the outlay of this money. This money is acquitted at the end of every fiscal year to the Department of Implementation & Rural Development (DIRD) and other agencies for transparency and/or accountability purposes. For the last five years, it is estimated above K2.5m (K2 500 000.00). That money belongs to the people. Our attempts to receive expenditure reports submitted to the DIRD for the last 20 years (cumulatively over K10m) were unsuccessful; even so, Vatican has a night.

3.2 District Service Improvement Program (DSIP) Fund.

Unlike DSG, District Service Improvement Program (DSIP) Fund of K10m each year is a discretionary fund. It is discretionary because the expenditure is at the MP's accord. There are absolutely no strict guidelines. This fund is open to abuse and misuse. Only for the last five years, it was K50m. [My general view is that up to K9.5m of this money should be constitutionalised so that its expenditure is precisely designated for developments and public services needed in the Electorates, and is strictly guided and acquitted. MPs must be accountable for their actions. The balance of K0.5m (K500 000.00) is more than enough to be discretionary fund. Nevertheless, it is currently abused and misused and official corruption is alarmingly skyrocketing.]
When added together with the K2.5m DSG for the last five years, it was K52.5m. K52.5m is just a lot of money in any body’s language. That money is people’s money meant for infrastructural developments, school fees, rehabilitation of existing services, farming or other sustainable projects, and many more.

3.3 Other Funds.

From time to time, there are other grants/funds. For instance, the K32m that the PM had recently announced at Monkam to upgrade and seal Ambum road which will be deposited into Tage Pimana Yakain Investments Ltd (TPYIL). TPYIL has zero time-proven business record/reputation and machine and technical personnel capacities to have awarded such a K32m worth project. The tender process was highly politicised and greed-driven. That is the sensible meaning of corruption.
4. Dipping into the till.

Speaking only for the last 5 years, Mr. Pundari earned a salary of about K1.05m. Whether you believe it not, the individual greed had stirred his egocentric desire to dip into the till (viz. people’s K50m). He had to devise a means to systematically do that with an aim to circumvent criminal prosecution. Thus, he had formed three companies so far solely for that purpose and they are; South Pacific Builders Ltd (SPBL) incorporated on 8 June 1993, Kaipal Investments Ltd (KIL) incorporated on 17 March 1997 and TPYIL incorporated on 30 May 2008.
These companies are the main pipelines leading to one big bowl. The Rakapos-Yalyugus road, Yarulam-Pokerapos road, Wapai-Keokai road, Wapai-Sagures Road, etc are all done by TPYIL. KIL is believed to have leased some of its machines to TPYIL during the above projects. SPBL has a long history. Previously this building company was managed by Ps. Theo Yamben. Now under Mr. Lucas Kurapae's management, the company had built Kaipores Health Centre. Our K52.5m for the last five years has been piped back into that huge bowl. That is pure greed, isn’t it? At the end of the day, the poor managers are used big time.

5. Models of selflessness.

Why can’t Mr. Pundari facilitate people of KA to form associations, ILGs and such other corporative bodies with legal capacity through which the people can commonly own such machines which can then be used to bring infrastructural services upon funding from DSG and DSIP Funds? In this way, I am of the view that our economy at Electorate level could be stimulated and self-sustained (stable).
Another way of spending public money without greedy string attached to is to form a KA children school fee assistance scheme and eject funds into it which can be used to pay school fees for TVET students, upgrading students, tertiary students, sending Grade 10 and 12 dropouts to Bomana Police College, etc. KA needs integral human development (which is the foremost goal (Goal 1) of the National Goals and Directive Principles enshrined in the Preamble of the country’s Constitution). Why can’t public funds be allocated in this way with the aim of benefiting poor people without a string being attached to pipe it back into the big dish?
The churches in KA Electorate need to build their churches, chapels, pastors’ houses, kids’ shelters, etc. But if funds were allocated, nothing could have gone back to the big dish.
All old roads and church-run schools and health centres are in need of rehabilitation. Ambum road is narrowing. Kompiam road is jagged. And K52.5m?

6. Tactic to extinguish adversary using vehicles bought by public funds.

Public money is used to buy new Landcruisers and are given to individuals who pose threat, who come from place of strong adversary like Rakapos or Yakan land for that matter, who can close his eyes to the hot dying spot, etc. These poor people forget that they own nothing and are being used to further extend his empire. ALL these vehicles including controversial HAT 306 are registered under KA District Development Authority (KADDA) except one Landcruiser. Their marriage has no future. In fact, NO ONE person is closed to Mr. Pundari. Who will tell me that you are his most intimate?
Another tactic is to give cash handouts to individual kanakaes who storm his house door. It is happening at the instant as I speak at Pokeramares (Note that Mr. Pundari moved to Pokeramares because Mr. Simon Nanaokali Peheinow gave him no place at Meraemanda). Lust for money is depriving those people’s good conscience. Good conscience is not learnedness. It is not acquired erudition. It is simple as doing what is morally right. Individualized approach to stub out strong ant-Pundaris is, to my mind, a bad trend of leadership. Amidst, there is the rumor by many who storm his house (including those who put up big posters) that they intend to have their last overdue slice before denying a vote at all. I have no conclusion for that. I will that up to the players.


7. Conclusion.

In short, change of political leadership in KA is necessary. It is necessary by every reason. KA needs honest and fair leadership through someone who can equally distribute all services to all parts of the Electorate and deliver impact projects that are worth K52.5m in the next five years. Someone who will not form his own construction companies and divert mammoth public funds into his/her big bowl. Someone who will encourage people to form corporate societies collectively owned by all members of the clan or tribe and pump the K50m to their thus-formed own companies. Someone who will thus collectively engage our people in Small & Medium Enterprises (SME) so to sustain their own local economy and not individualised approach targeted to smother strong opposition. I hope the people of KA will not be fooled this time.

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