Opposition: govt uses funds to manipulate MPs
30 July 2009
Opposition Leader Sir Mekere Morauta has referred Prime Minister Somare, Speaker Nape and Minister Tiensten to the Ombudsman Commission for an alleged unconstitutional adjournment of Parliament.
“What happened yesterday, when the Government adjourned Parliament to November, is an outrage,” said National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop.
Sir Mekere said: “It confirms what the parties in Opposition have been saying for months: that the ruling clique is a law unto itself. They are clearly scared of facing a vote of no confidence, so they have shut down Parliament,”
He said the Government’s action to shut down Parliament was unconstitutional because Parliament had not sat for the required number of days stipulated by the Constitution.
The Opposition said that, for seven years, the National Alliance Government had used the Speaker’s office as a political tool when this office was supposed to be impartial.
They claim that the reason for the MP's revolt and the no-confidence motion was simply that the Somare Government had not delivered much and, when MP's want to take responsibility and fill the void created by the Government, they are hampered.
“The Somare regime uses project funds to threaten or manipulate members and the decisions they make on the floor of Parliament,” it was alleged.
Source:
PNG Post-Courier and thanks to Gelab Piak
Dear Interested Citizens -
From where I sit, I believe we are witnessing a tragedy. From out of the blue certain members of our Parliament suddenly have K2 million in their project funding accounts, while at the same time another national icon providing huge benefits to the country is left to rot.
Let's face the reality that we can afford to revive Kerevat National High School drawing firstly on our funds, the nation's fiscal resources, held in trust for our people by our national leaders.
We as a nation can make sure this great school continues to produce great people, supported as it and all government schools should be, from the public purse.
Posted by: Lawrence Stephens | 05 August 2009 at 09:02 PM
A Crimes and Misconduct Commission must be established to take up the slack from the PNG Ombudsman Commission.
The CMC must be given absolute power under the leadership code to delve into the affairs of all politicians.
The powers must be supreme and wide-ranging and provide authority to investigate all matters relating to corruption. The CMC must also be able to travel abroad to conduct its investigations.
The time the government bought by suspending Parliament gives it an opportunity to offer cash to errant MPs. The K2 million each handed out the other day was an example. I do not believe that calling it ‘development funds’ makes any difference.
There are many areas where people are asking ‘Where’s our MP? Since he was elected we haven’t seen him and we haven’t seen any development yet’.
Posted by: Bernard Oberleuter | 01 August 2009 at 11:51 AM
It is good to see that some politicians have a conscience and are moving across the chamber. In time I think the Opposition will gain the numbers to topple the Government.
If the Constitution has been placed in disrepute, the government is legless. Can the Governor-General call a dissolution of Parliament and invite a caretaker government to oversee the Executive, Judiciary and Legislature? Can someone with a knowledge of the PNG Constitution confirm if this is possible?
It seems to me that what they are doing is the very same political application applied in Fiji without the rotten apple. Corruption, misuse and mismanagement. Parking millions of US dollars in bank accounts overseas, yet the Ombudsman Commission has been unable to clarify just who are these politicians who have their hand in the country's royalities meant for landowners and development funds for the rural districts of PNG.
No one seems to have the balls to put the nail in the coffin except for a courageous few.
Posted by: Bernard Oberleuter | 01 August 2009 at 06:16 AM