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Douglas Tomuriesa, Pope Francis and James Marape

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  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 other wo
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Ire over daughter’s TikTok post

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  May 11, 2023 Main Stories A TIKTOK post by Foreign Affairs Minister Justin Tkatchenko’s daughter, boasting of her trip to witness King Charles III’s coronation, has infuriated many citizens. Savannah Tkatchenko accompanied her father who represented the Prime Minster to attend the coronation on May 6. The video hash-tagged #aussiesinengland and showing selfies of Savannah at various stages of the trip with one scene showing her bare back getting dressed, brought angry responses on social media forum, many wanting to know who paid for her trip. Calls have been made for the prime minister to decommission Tkatchenko and to have him referred to the Ombudsman Commission. Tkatchenko has come to his daughter’s defence, claiming the social media posters were “opening their big mouths” without finding out the facts. He said because his wife could not make the trip, his eldest daughter, Savannah, had to represent her mother. “Savannah is a Papua New Guinean citizen, but holds an Australian pas
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Staff locked out

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  By DYLAN MURRAY EMPLOYEES of the National Housing Commission (NHC) were locked out of the head office in Port Moresby, following differences over who is the rightful managing director, a spokesman says. A commission spokesman said that they had been locked out by police since Friday, preventing them from entering the premises. “Police had given instructions to the security company taking care of the premises, which is owned by Tropicana, to not let us in,” he said. The row began when the National Court in Waigani on April 28 quashed the appointment of Henry Mokono as the managing director by the National Executive Council in July, 2021, saying it did not follow proper process. The court upheld a judicial review application filed by former NHC acting managing director Elizabeth Bowada. Mokono in a statement claimed that Bowada last Thursday accompanied by police stormed into the NHC head office and demanded that the keys to the managing director’s office be handed to her. But Bowada t
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Kramer must appeal tribunal ruling

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  May 4, 2023 Letters IN the name of fairness and natural justice, the dismissed Member for Madang Bryan Kramer should be allowed to appeal the ruling of the leadership tribunal that dismissed him for scandalising the Judiciary. It is crucial for Kramer to appeal to the higher court his dismissal as most people want the higher court to interpret what is accorded in Section 46 of the Constitution in relation to whether there are limits in that provision on the freedom of expression. Here, Section 46 of the Constitution gives a person freedom to express what they see and feel as improper or can openly counter it by expressing via the public media on the suspicious conduct or malicious intent of other persons holding public office. Quite frankly, when Kramer’s alleged offence was spotted at that time, the tribunal provided no evidence of public outrage that could have resulted in open public protest or protest in other social media platforms that could nail Kramer to the cross. A parliame
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I will appeal decision, this is not the end: Kramer

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  SUSPENDED Madang MP Bryan Kramer says he will appeal the decision of a Leadership Tribunal recommending his dismissal from public office. He said outside court yesterday that he was not surprised by the tribunal’s decision. “I expected such penalty when looking at the decision on verdict,” he said. “This is not the end. “I will appeal the Tribunal’s decision in the National Court and Supreme Court – where necessary. “There are some past instances where MPs got dismissed, appealed their decision and got reinstated. “I will do the same.” The tribunal, consisting of Judge Lawrence Kangwia as chairman, and magistrates Josephine Nidue and Edward Komia, yesterday recommended to the speaker that Kramer be dismissed from public office for three years. They said Kramer’s social media post gave birth to public perception of corruption by the Chief Justice (CJ) and the judiciary, as the CJ could not be isolated from the judiciary. “The judiciary is the third arm of Government referred to as the
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Nasfund, IRC sign deal

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  May 4, 2023 Main Stories THE Internal Revenue Commission and Nasfund will work together to promote transparency and accountability in managing company and private employee benefits, and improve tax collection following an agreement signing in Port Moresby yesterday, commissioner-general Sam Koim says. Koim said non-compliance behaviours flourished due to information gap as such partnership and collaboration would help IRC to eliminate and reduce the gap and the information, especially in relation to private employees contributing to Nasfund. “Both organisations would enhance their information sharing capabilities, enabling the IRC to better comply with regulations and assess risks associated with salary packaging abuse by employees through their employers,” he said. “We look forward to a productive and mutually beneficial partnership with Nasfund.” Nasfund chief executive officer Rajeev Sharma said it was a significant step forward promoting transparency and accountability in the man
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K60mil for police allowances

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  May 4, 2023 Main Stories POLICE officers will receive their outstanding service allowance this month, according to Police Association president Lowa Tambua. He said the outstanding allowances were owed for the years 2010 and 2015. The allowances were for not only for members of the association but also non-members. They are expected to receive their service allowances by the end of this month, Tambua said. He thanked police commissioner David Manning for securing the K60 million from the State to settle the outstanding allowances. “The allowance together with other categories of allowances enjoyed by the police are captured in the first enterprise-based agreement (EBA) signed between the Police Association, the Department of Personnel Management and the Police Department in 2006,” Tambua said in a statement yesterday. “It is a legally-binding agreement. Thus all allowances and all other employment conditions such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-related pay increases captured in the
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City Hall closes unlicensed shops

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  May 4, 202 3 Main Stories By SONYA KILAGI THE National Capital District Commission has closed down some retail shops in the capital city for health safety reasons and because they have no trading licence. City Manager Ravu Frank said: “It’s our duty to ensure that business houses comply with requirements because we are responsible for protecting the health of the general public and we will do everything to make sure that the business houses comply.” It is one of the requirements of the Boroko Precinct Transformation Project to start at the end of this month. Shops in and around Boroko lacking both requirements have been closed down until they meet the conditions. Taurama resident Max Ume said two shops were closed last week. “The shops are at a central location which makes it convenient for us. “We buy at a much lower and affordable price, so their closure have affected us,” he said. “We are hoping that the shop owners meet the requirements.” Ravu also reminded betel-nut chewers to b
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Douglas Tomuriesa, Pope Francis and James Marape

-
Image
  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 other wo
Read more