THE CASE FOR JOHN ROSSO

WHAT MAKES JOHN ROSSO STANDS OUT FROM THE REST? AND WHY HE WOULD BE CHALLENGED IN 2022.

by SYLVESTER GAWI

First of all, Lae is home to a multi cultural, diversified and cross section of people from all throughout Papua New Guinea and from all walks of life.

Despite being the industrial hub and garden city in PNG in its heydays, Lae was also dubbed as the pothole city riddled with craters and a waterway during rainy season.

Lae's municipal service provider - the Lae City Council - was operating without proper accounting mechanisms and no asset registry. Bogus claims, nepotism, bribery, mismanagement and misuse of public assets and funds were prevalent.

Lae City was mismanaged to a point that it didn't even have one rubbish bin or a city council rubbish truck picking up household garbages.

The city council was getting paid money from the provincial government (about K6 million per annum) for road maintenance and city cleaning but nothing to show. Money was squandered on cronies and fraudulent claims.

Who would want to go against a system where Lae's top criminals were on payroll and getting paid handsomely every month?

Since being elected into parliament, John Rosso took the bull by its horn. He pushed for an audit of the council's accounts and negotiated for the culmination of the Lae City Authority Act 2015 - an administrative arm that will provide good prudent management of public assets and funds.

Audit reports and findings brought to light gross abuse of the Public Finance Management Act and massive theft of public monies through payment of bogus claims to cronies and those in authority. The Lae Main Market itself was a cash cow for those in authority - funding their trips, pokies, drinking spree and even numerous hire cars etc.

The Lae City Council account was in red with over K30 million owed to service providers including Nambawan Super and the Internal Revenue Commission.

Fast forward three years later with good prudent management of revenue collected by LCA, the once bankrupt LULLG will now have K20 million by 2022 in its operating account.

What happens to those who had been benefiting from the council before John Rosso was elected? They are rallying behind certain candidates to have John Rosso ousted in 2022 so that they can go back and feast with public funds.

Before John Rosso was elected, Lae City has K15 million to spend every year - that's K10 million DSIP and K5 million city council revenue. Now Lae will have an annual budget of K50 million by the issue of writs in 2022.

John Rosso's key allignment in the PANGU Pati led government paved way for more attention to be given to Lae by the National Government.

The Unitech to Tent City road which had been a waterway for decades is now sealed under the Marape-Basil government. It was committed by the then PNC government never got funded until Rosso and others got into power.

Several other major roads including the 9-mile to Yalu road are now being funded after years of commitment by the O'Neill government.

Thankyou to Morobe Governor Ginson Saonu, IRC Commissioner General Sam Koim and Prime Minister James Marape for the 20% GST revenue returns agreement which is now fixing all our suburban roads in Lae. Street roads that had never seen any upgrade for decades.

Being the Minister for Lands & Physical Planning, John Rosso reclaimed almost 90% of sporting fields and recreational areas that were stolen through fraudulent means. All these are now placed under trust of the LCA for our children.

Land grabbers whose fake titles that were forfeited will challenge John Rosso in 2022. They are using gullible Morobeans and the population at large to stand against Rosso.

The line has been drawn, it's going to be dinau moni, lamb flaps, carton beer against a system of good prudent management for a better Lae.

Those crony service providers who never got paid by the previous council will be funding anti-Rosso campaigns. Some candidates will be using churches, Sunday schools and many gullible followers to launch their attack.

They will complain about every petty issues behind the comfort of their smartphones. None of them will walk the talk.

In the last days, the devil will walk and talk as the saviour. Do not be deceived hardworking taxpayers, never let the lion enter the chicken house.

Everyone wants to have a share of the millions of kina Lae is generating. Do you want to be fed with bones and garbage like the last 40-years?

Make a choice, make a stand for your children.