PNGBLOGS

by BRYAN KRAMER Papua New Guinea's economy will become the central issue in 2016. The recent IMF Report highlighted that there has been a significant increase in overall public debt, which amounts to about 56 percent of GDP (K25 billion) once arrears to a superannuation fund and other liabilities are taken into account. This is the highest level of debt in PNG's history. Prior to Peter O'Neill taking office in 2011, the country's total debt reported in the Treasury Mid-Report was only K6.3 billion and foreign reserves were at K9.3 billion at end of December 2011. In a space of just four years, Peter O'Neill has almost quadrupled our debt to K25 Billion and depleted our foreign reserves to just $US1.8 Billion. O'Neill recently praised an IMF report for presenting a frank assessment of the economy. Both the Prime Minister and the Post Courier highlighted that the IMF report had commended the Government for achieving impressive economic growth in recent years

by MARK AMBANE Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s illegal and corrupt deal with UBS to buy 10 percent of Oil Search is now a full-scale disaster. It is threatening the viability of the 2016 Budget and could further undermine Government finances, which are already at crisis point. The State’s 150 million shares were bought in March 2014 for $8.20 each. That is a total $A1.2 billion, or about K3 billion at the exchange rate early that month. A few days later, on 14 March 2014, the Prime Minister boasted that the country had already made a profit on the shares of $A75 million (about K170 million). Today, the losses on the purchase are stupendous. Those 159 million shares were worth slightly less than $A5.70 today. That is a loss of $A400 million. At today’s exchange rate that is about K850 million. Peter O’Neill, Peter Botton of Oil Search and UBS have cost Papua New Guineans almost a billion kina. Worse still, the disastrous slide in the value of Oil

by BRYAN KRAMER Yesterday (11/01/16) Post Courier published an article by Gorethy Kenneth headlined "O'Neill: Govt has no interest in Panguna" The report stated "Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has reiterated that the Government has no interest to own the Panguna Copper Mine on Bougainville." It went on to quote O'Neill stating; "There have been suggestions that the Government is keen to buy 53.38 per cent Rio Tinto’s shares in the Australia firm Bougainville Copper Limited. "The National Government is committed to improving the delivery of basic services to the people of Bougainville as a top most priority of our Government, the report said. "Recent decisions, including rebuilding the main roads including Kokopau to Arawa, and to Buin and the awarding of contracts, are clear examples of this commitment. "As I stated in Arawa and in Panguna, the National Government is not interested in talking about anything e

by JACK NAIME Another independent international assessment of Papua New Guinea’s financial management has contradicted the spin and deception by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, Treasury Secretary Daire Vele and the mainstream media led by the Post-Courier. The report, Poor Financial Management in PNG: Can It Be Turned Around? Is available here: http://devpolicy.org/pngs-financial-management-can-it-be-turned-around-20160112/ . It was written by PFMConnect, a respected international consultancy specialising in developing country financial management. The report slams the O’Neill Government’s financial management and reinforces the criticism of other independent international observers who have exposed the corruption, incompetence and waste that is rife under Peter O’Neill and Daire Vele. Papua New Guinea ranks 21st out of the 24 assessments of Public Financial Management conducted by the IMF last year, according to the report. Most alarming is the fact that under Mr O’N

As Papua New Guinea heads into the 2017 elections, it is timely to read the report by the Commonwealth Observer Group on the 2012 national elections.  It gives citizens an idea of what to expect in 18 months ­ more massive corruption by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and PNC, and the Electoral Commission. The Group that visited PNG at the time slammed the conduct of the 2012 national elections, saying “serious concerns need to be addressed for the future.” The report confirms what all Papua New Guineans know – the 2012 election, like others before it, was rigged. The findings are in keeping with the PNC­sponsored corruption that that is destroying every part of society, not just the electoral process. They show that O’Neill and PNC are rapidly destroying Parliamentary Democracy and instituting a Mugabe­style dictatorship. It is likely, considering the details of the report and the recommendations that have not been acted upon, that the 2017 elections will be rigged by PNC and the Elect

by JACK PALME JOHNSON Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and his heavily corrupt National Executive Council have, on Wednesday 16th December, approved to abolish the Limited Preferential Voting (LPV) System and revert to the old system –First Past the Post. We do not know the reasoning behind this regressive Christmas gift to PNG by the O’Neill Government but well-placed sources confirm the NEC decision. This decision does not come as a surprise to Papua New Guinea, the land of bountiful tolerance and wilful ignorance. It shouldn’t be surprising at all because O’Neill Government has lost its popularity on all fronts. Economic Mismanagement, Grand Scale Corruption, Evasion, Deception, Lies, and Manipulation are among the outstanding hallmarks of PNC Party and O’Neill Administration. PM O’Neill himself has the NPF case, the Paraka Case, the UBS Leadership Tribunal and the PNG Power Generators case still hanging over him and yet continues to run this country down. Thanks to our entire

by BARRY PISIMI On or around September 2012, immediately after Peter O’Neill was installed as the Prime Minister, he (O’Neill) took a huge delegate to China, organised by his sidekick, Ni Cragnolini. It was openly reported that a loan of K6 billion was obtained from the Chinese Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) to fund certain rehabilitation of ailing infrastructures. One would have thought that PNG Powers rundown and incompatible power generation and distribution equipment would be first priority. NO! The K6 Billion was never appropriated in the 2012 National Budget, nor was it captured in the subsequent budgets in 2013, 2014 and 2015. We really don’t know whether that loan was obtained and if so, did the money ever enter PNG? One of the mandatory conditions of Exim Bank loans is that a Chinese multi-national corporation, mostly State owned enterprises, has to be nominated to deliver the projects identified by the recipient country. Under this arrangement, the funds remain in Chi