PNGBLOGS

MRDC is the Trustee of funds belonging to Landowners of major resource projects in the country. It makes "investments" on behalf of the landowners. Peter O'Neil in his capacity as PM owns the shares of MRDC and Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari is the Chairman of the Board. In 2012 CEO Augustine Mano and the MRDC board bought the fledgeling Resort in Fiji with much fanfare. The resort boasts an 18 hole golf course and numerous swimming pools. This transaction was rushed despite opposition from landowners and against the advice of experts in the hospitality industry in Fiji. MRDC not only purchased the resort but it also invested heavily in the construction of a new wing. It appears that the resort is now in serious financial strife with very low occupancy rates and dwindling income. Rooms are believed to be offered now for as low as K120 as no one is going there. The financial status of the resort and all other MRDC investments cannot be confirmed as the financial statem

Outlined below are some of the most serious allegations that warrant the immediate termination of Mahesh Patel and appointment of a new Board chairman to take charge of the SOE. We will provide evidence once an internal investigation is set up. SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS AGAINST MAHESH PATEL.(Evidence Available) 1.    2012- VES (voluntary exit scheme). Mahesh Patel, being chairman of HR Sub- Committee went ahead and implemented the VES under the pretext of Government Reforms. The exercise was poorly planned and executed, which resulted in the termination of employment of approximately 500 qualified technical staff, engineers and support staff from their employment. As a result a skills gap was created, Telikom never recovered and recorded consecutive loss in revenue and never declared profit and paid dividends to the state up till 2017. The affected staff under VES in 2012 took Telikom PNG to court seeking damages to be awarded to them. In 2017, a three men Supreme Court Bench upheld the N

JOHNNY BLADES Melanesian grouping of Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands reconsider their regional links They've come a long way from trading fish and coconuts. There's discord in the Melanesian Spearhead Group over the accession of Fiji to the chairmanship, a battle that reflects recognition of the growing importance of Melanesia as global demand for resources heats up. That wasn't always the case. The inception of the group, initially as a trade bloc, in the mid-1980s drew derision from some. Vanuatu's ambassador at the EU, Roy Mickey Joy, remembers when they started negotiations for the MSG trade agreement: "The reaction we got from Canberra and Wellington was 'what are the Melanesians going to trade with, fish and coconuts?'" Since then, there's been a shift in global economic policy, says Mickey Joy. The group now has a bigger role to play in the region and beyond. These days, the MSG – whose full members are Papua New Guinea,

JOHNNY BLADES Melanesian grouping of Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Vanuatu and Solomon Islands reconsider their regional links They've come a long way from trading fish and coconuts. There's discord in the Melanesian Spearhead Group over the accession of Fiji to the chairmanship, a battle that reflects recognition of the growing importance of Melanesia as global demand for resources heats up. That wasn't always the case. The inception of the group, initially as a trade bloc, in the mid-1980s drew derision from some. Vanuatu's ambassador at the EU, Roy Mickey Joy, remembers when they started negotiations for the MSG trade agreement: "The reaction we got from Canberra and Wellington was 'what are the Melanesians going to trade with, fish and coconuts?'" Since then, there's been a shift in global economic policy, says Mickey Joy. The group now has a bigger role to play in the region and beyond. These days, the MSG – whose full members are Papua New Gu

Merita Huch By the end of this year, the remaining 10 Pacific United Nations members should be ratifying the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). This is the expectation of the United Nations as stressed in a recently held seminar towards ratification of the convention. The Pacific region has the lowest ratifying rate on this convention. A total of 10 countries have not signed and the UN Offices in the region is moving in to further push awareness of what the UN describes as a vital agreement when it comes to protecting the Pacific’s integrity and allowing this small region more involvement in international cooperation to fight corruption nationally and internationally. Senior officials from around the region have been at loggerheads with members of the UN Pacific Centre in finding ways to devise the best framework that will suit the Pacific when the islands do decide to sign this agreement. Only Palau, Fiji and Papua New Guinea from the region have ratified UNCAC. For t

Merita Huch By the end of this year, the remaining 10 Pacific United Nations members should be ratifying the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). This is the expectation of the United Nations as stressed in a recently held seminar towards ratification of the convention. The Pacific region has the lowest ratifying rate on this convention. A total of 10 countries have not signed and the UN Offices in the region is moving in to further push awareness of what the UN describes as a vital agreement when it comes to protecting the Pacific’s integrity and allowing this small region more involvement in international cooperation to fight corruption nationally and internationally. Senior officials from around the region have been at loggerheads with members of the UN Pacific Centre in finding ways to devise the best framework that will suit the Pacific when the islands do decide to sign this agreement. Only Palau, Fiji and Papua New Guinea from the region have ratified UNCAC. F