Opposition Leader Douglas Tomuriesa said he is disappointed and embarrassed over the way His Holiness Pope Francis was treated by Prime Minister James Marape over the last three-days during the Papal visit, and the lack of courtesy and respect shown by the Prime Minister. He said the Prime Minister continuously declares PNG as a ‘Christian country’ and prides himself on being a religious individual but he was surprised when the Pope was continuously snubbed by the PM over the weekend since the Pope’s arrival on Friday. “The Pope is the head of the Catholic church, the largest Christian church in the world and he is also a head of state. “PNG not only being a Christian country, but a country that prides itself as a ‘friend to all, enemy to none’, the PM should be according the Pope with the highest level of respect,” Tomuriesa said. The Opposition Leader pointed out that on Friday, the Prime Minister did not welcome the Pope at the airport, a tradition he had accorded to many othe...
Police rounding up the men and a woman at Sumomini, West Sepik.
By MIRIAM ZARRIGA in Vanimo POLICE have busted an illegal cockfighting operation run by expatriates in the mountains of Vanimo-Green’s Sumomini in West Sepik on Sunday afternoon. About 30 men from Indonesia, Malaysia and China, and a woman from Indonesia, had been taking bets on the cockfights were arrested. Police Commissioner David Manning was informed of the bust by policemen in Vanimo on Sunday afternoon after they returned from the mountains. Manning told The National that the cockerels were specially bred and conditioned for increased stamina and strength to get them more aggressive. “The cockerels are injected with drugs brought in by their owners. “The birds are then fitted with razors, known as gaffs, and the ‘armed’ cockerels are then put into a ring, called cockpit, to fight until one is maimed or dead. “I have told the policemen to ensure that the expatriates are dealt with under our laws. ““Blood sport in Papua New Guinea is illegal. “This is animal cruelty and this sort of gambling is not allowed in the country. “If found guilty, I would expect them to be deported.”
About K16,000 was taken from the 27 men and a woman at Sumomini.
Chief Migration Officer Stanis Hulahau told The National that: “Our involvement was purely coincidental as we were in the area to conduct our spot checks.” “I was reliably informed of the illegal activity and supported policemen to bust the illegal cockfighting operation,” he said. “As part of the partnership with police, our team is now going through work permits, which were collected at the scene. “If it is found that they have breached laws under the Migration Act 1978 and Employment of Non-Citizen Act 2007, they will be penalised accordingly.” About 26 men, a lone woman from Indonesia, Malaysia and China had been taking bets on the cockfights at the illegal gambling ring deep in the mountains of Vanimo-Green. From the 27, 22 have been formally arrested and charged at 3.25pm yesterday for their involvement in illegal gambling (cockfighting) and also animal cruelty. Both charges are under the Summary Offences Act. Five of the suspects failed to present themselves. Seized from the suspects were K16,000, a samurai sword and a bayonet, both offensive weapons. The gambling saw five companies betting against each other with bets going as high as K10,000 and as low as K1,000 for each rooster. Down a road through the bush, the fighting ring was built with little market stalls surrounding the pit littered the end of the dusty deserted road. A local, Charlie Wamo, who identified himself as the landowner, said the ring was set up by workers of the logging and oil palm companies for entertainment in 2020. One of the workers told immigration that the ring was set up after a circular had been circulated within their company premises that gambling would not be entertained.
REMNANT AJ Group Limited, one of the contactor who was engaged by the National Housing Corporation to connect the sewage system at the NHC’s new Durand Project site donated a new vehicle to NHC on Friday, 7th June, 2024. The key of the new vehicle that costed the company close to K150, 000 was presented to the NHC’s project management division who will be using the vehicle to do inspection on the Durand project site on a daily basis. NHC Acting Managing Director Abel Tol while thanking the Company Managing Director Andy Minok, he said purchasing a vehicle by the contractor and donating it to NHC was one of the requirement written on the Contract signed. Tol said this company, Remnant AJ Group Limited was awarded a K3. 2 Million worth Project and that was to fix and connect the sewage system from the MacGregor Police Barracks all the way to the main Sewer. This contract was awarded to this named company in July last year and this is one of the few contractors who were engaged by N...
MARAPE’S DECISION DEFICIENCY* Wednesday 5 June 2024 Approved for release – Recently some political commentators who blindly endorse Hon James Marape as the Prime Minister, decried the Opposition’s push for a VONC, arguing that “a change in the Prime Minister will not fix the problems the country has.” This is where they are wrong. Decisions have the power to affect people and the decisions, or indecision, of a Prime Minister, affect the nation. This is the most important leadership quality that evades Marape – the innate ability to make decisions that are in the country’s best interests. If Marape was serious about the country, he would make the following decisions to save PNG: 1) Review the national budget and cut spending, stop borrowing, and reduce taxes. 2) Give the Central Bank their independence back. 3) Stop printing money at the Central Bank. 4) Stop Connect PNG and other pork-barrel programs. 5) Give each province Block Grants and greater aut...
The parliament’s speaker Job Pomat’s decision on Wednesday has ignited a fierce debate among members, highlighting the complexities and challenges of parliamentary procedures. In a phone interview yesterday afternoon with Kalang News, Douglas Tomuriesa, the Member for Kiriwina-Goodenough, and the Opposition Leader expressed the oppositions concerns regarding the Speaker's ruling, which they argue undermines the decorum and impartiality expected of the chair. Tomuriesa emphasized the importance of maintaining respect and dignity in the House, asserting that the Speaker must embody impartiality. "The decorum of the House depends on the chair, and the respect, the dignity of the chair must always be maintained. In this case, impartiality is very important," he stated. He criticized the Speaker's approach, questioning the decision to seek court clarification after making a ruling. "It's like putting the cart before the horse. How can you make your ruling and lat...
Provincial MP for West New Britain, Sasindran Muthuvel has called on the government to commit to the people of Papua New Guinea that it will prioritise Papua New Guineans in the sale of Motor Vehicle Insurance Limited’s (MVIL) shares in BSP Financial Group. Governor Muthuvel said that given the National Executive Council has approved this decision and is now a foregone conclusion, the next best step is to ensure Papua New Guineans do not lose shareholding in such an important commercial entity. Mr Muthuvel said: “I understand the government has indicated unofficially that its intention is to sell these shares to Papua New Guineans, but they must put this commitment on paper to properly assure the nation. “Contradictory to these remarks, the NEC decision that gave effect to the selling of shares has no explicit directive to ensure these shares are exclusively sold to Papua New Guineans. “Majority ownership of BSP shares are one of the biggest assets ou...
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