PNGBLOGS

by JACK KEGALP Samson seems to be playing both sides of politics to further his own personal and political ambitions.  On the one hand, he is pushing the Marape/Basil Government to support his "crowdfunding" movement where he has been literally "begging" and even to some extent "forcing" various individuals and businesses houses to make pledges and contribute money upwards of K10,000 each towards this cause. On the other hand, he has been seen dining and getting drunk with former Prime Minister Peter O'Neill at various locations in Port Moresby. The most recent one was over the weekend at O'Neill's Crowne Plaza Hotel in downtown Port Moresby. Samson himself has his own political ambitions for the Western Highlands Regional Seat which he contested and lost to Paias Wingti in the 2017 elections, and which he is no doubt contesting again in 2022. This then begs the question of whether he is genuinely trying to do something good for Papua New Guine

by DR PATRICK ONGUGLO The stitched up act in Parliament last week all a lie... Peter O'Neill used his position as PM to put PNG into more debt, read how O'Neill drummed up this idea back in 2014. Prime Minister Peter O’Neill (‘aka O’Steal) has personally and unilaterally directed that the State of PNG borrow US$1.2 Billion Dollars through international financiers syndicated by the Swiss UBS Bank, to buy 10% of Oil Search Limited (OSL) shares. It is believed this transaction is motivated by personal gain. Therefore, this loan is believed to be for a corrupt outcome. This corruption is perpetrated by UBS and other international banks lending the money.  PNG does not need the loan. It is Peter ONeill who needs the loan for his own corrupt gain. He is using the country’s assets to obtain a personal benefit. This must be made very clear to the international lenders. On this basis, no future PNG Government will be liable to repay the funds, lent for an illegal purpose.  As o

by DAVID LEPI Whilst the recent Oil Search share offloading by the government is attracting a vast array of discussions that are now gaining momentum by the day and the Prime Minister said to make public the facts surrounding the share sales perhaps it might be good we go back where all things started and take a look at the chronology of events. IPIC Loan It started in 2009 from what is known as the largest investment decision ever made by any PNG government. The Somare led government was investing in the 11 billion Exon-Mobil led LNG project in taking up equity of 16.8 percent by borrowing 1.68 billion Australian dollars from a little-known fund called International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) in the Middle Eastern oil state of Abu Dhabi. This took place at a time when the economy was feeling the global credit crunch and a dramatic drop in commodities prices that had made finding funds for new resource projects very uncertain. Arthur Somare, the then state enterprise m

by YAKAN LEKAPALI Will Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia settle the law on re Powers, functions, duties, and responsibilities of the Commissioner of Police? The grant of interim stay orders by the Supreme Court instituted by Chief Justice Sir Salamo has not settled well with many frustrated citizens. This is understandable given the grave negativity with the recent incidents involving senior judges. But hold on and be patient for now. Was the grant on the stay orders legal? In short, YES. Like other citizens, Peter O'Neill has the right to appeal as allowed by the law. Hence, among other factors, the execution of the warrant of arrest stay in the interim is in order. Without the temporary stay order, the whole purpose of the appeal could stand defeated.  Note that the time gap between execution of the warrant by police lapsed when Police Commissioner Gari Baki delayed executing warrant of arrest on PM. Prime Minister Peter O'Neill must, therefore, thank Gari Baki for the de

PNG BLOGS Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s boast that he will increase national debt will burden all Papua New Guineans by committing future income to high interest payments, reducing the amount available for health, education and transport. “A primary cause of the woes Papua New Guinea is currently experiencing is Mr O’Neill’s gross mismanagement of the economy and public finances, including imprudent borrowing,” Sir Mekere said. “His stated intention to increase borrowing if he is re-elected will make matters much, much worse, and will prolong by many years any attempt to rescue the nation. “It is an example of his arrogant and uncaring attitude.” Sir Mekere pointed out that under the Fiscal Responsibility Act, the K22 billion public debt already incurred by Mr O’Neill has surpassed the legal limit by more than 5 percent above the permitted 30 percent of GDP. His plan to increase debt even further is simply irresponsible.  It should be prevented and it should be inves

PNG BLOGS First hand sources have confirmed to PNG Blogs that the sighting of armed expatriate men in Port Moresby are not official US representatives and furthermore the United States Embassy disavows any knowledge of them. They do not have anything to do with the security preparations for the APEC Summit scheduled for next year. PNGBLOGS reported on the makeup of this private security operations last year: Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, his personal adviser Dr Jakob Weiss, Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari and Police Commissioner Gari Baki are involved in a secret plot with LR Group of Israel to create a private intelligence agency and secret paramilitary spy force in Papua Guinea.The four have already handed over some of the nation’s most secret intelligence information to LR Group, which is headed in Papua New Guinea by Weiss’s son Ilan.This includes top-secret internal National Intelligence Organization documents and the methodology whereby all PNG security intelligence oper

by FRANK TASO Since he and his cronies Nigel Parker, Musje Werror, Moi Avei, Daire Vele and Jakob Weiss threw out PNG Sustainable Development, the mine has been on a death spiral. It has caught O’Neill Disease, the fatal and untreatable parasitical sickness that infects all State Owned Enterprises. O’Neill and his blood-sucking worms grow fat by siphoning all the goodness out of the host SOE, leaving just a shell requiring regular injections of taxpayer funds medicine to recover, only to be sucked dry all over again. Now O’Neill and his cronies are lining up for another feast on OTML. The Prime Minister has ordered CEO Peter Graham to rip as much money out of the business as they can and give it to the Government as soon as possible to help avoid looming bankruptcy. The OTML board is dominated by O’Neill appointees and cronies including convicted Leadership Code fraudster Moi Avei, , Treasury Secretary and wanted criminal Daire Vele, Western Province Administrator and fra

by JACK TOAPELIS Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has broken his promise to PNG LNG landowners to support their purchase of 4.27% equity in the project. A leaked policy submission by the Prime Minister, Treasurer Patrick Pruaitch and Finance Minister Jame Marape says landowners will have to go it alone and raise their own funds to buy the equity. The Prime Minister had previously agreed to debt financing by NPCP/Kumul Petroleum for the landowners so they could pay for their equity. This promise was effected in NEC decision 208 of 2015 – now the Prime Minister wants to rescind that decision through his new policy submission. Virtually all the recommendations in the Prime Minister’s submission are in breach of the 2009 Kokopo Umbrella Benefit-Sharing Agreement. Indeed the O’Neill Government has always been in breach of the Kokopo UBSA, notably in making agreed payments to the UBSA participants. As Sir Michael Somare said in a statement late last year:  “This g

PNGBLOGS Prime Minister and Ano Pala tried to use the Supreme Court Reference to stay other proceedings including the Sakora J orders in Supreme Court. The Supreme Court five men bench literally tore their application in pieces. THE Waigani National Court has refused an application filed by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and the National Executive Council to adjourn the hearing of two notices of motion relating to the legal representation of the Task Force Sweep Team chairman Sam Koim. Lawyer representing O’Neill and NEC Desmond Kipa, from Twivey Lawyers, told the court that lawyer Tiffany Twivey was in charge of the two motions and she could not be available in court because of what happened to her on Monday. Twivey stated in her affidavit that she was locked up at the National Fraud and Anti-Corruption interview room on Monday for about 14 hours with no electricity and water, which affected her physically and psychologically. Her medical certificate was submitted to the cou

Breaking News: Supreme Court Discharges Orders Preventing the Arrest of Peter O'Neill and James Marape. In a unanimous decision of the Supreme Court this morning, the Supreme Court dismissed the Appeal by James Marape and further discharged restraining orders preventing the arrest of O'Neill and Marape in relation to payments made to Paraka Lawyers. In this Appeal, James Marape filed taxation proceedings and used it to prevent the arrest of himself and O'Neill. The Supreme Court earlier issued blanket restraining orders against Police from arresting O'Neill, Marape and their lawyers/agents etc. This morning, the Supreme Court unanimously (all three members :- Hartshorne, Makail and Sawong) ruled that the Originating Summons does not raise any allegation that Police and members of Task-Force Sweep had abused the process or compromised their position in effecting the arrest. There is no claim that the Police are seeking to prevent the taxation proceeedings either

by MICHAEL JOSEPH PASSINGAN On 17 March PNG Blogs revealed that Peter O’Neill has secretly begged the World Bank for a loan of up to K1 billion. On 22 March we revealed that international agencies are about to downgrade Papua New Guinea’s credit rating once again – after already being downgraded late last year. Now some good news – the economy and national finances have been damaged so badly by O’Neill’s reckless borrowing and wasteful spending that his proposed $US1 billion sovereign bond issue is dead - D.E.A.D. This is good news because it means the nation’s indebtedness will not increase by $US1 billion in the immediate future. It means the long-suffering people will not have more debt to repay each year. IT MEANS THERE WON’T BE $US1 BILLION FOR O’NEILL TO STEAL AND WASTE The failure of the bond issue proves that international money markets won’t lend a toea to O’Neill’s corrupt regime unless it is at unaffordable penalty interest rates. Such unaffordable interest