Post Courier, Wednesday February 4, 2015

ISAAC NICHOLAS

New Koki market a breath of fresh air

THEonce iconic Koki market in Port Moresby has been given a rebirth and can once again take its seat as a melting pot of Papua New Guinean local produce.

Archaeologists will tell you that the Island of New Guinea is one of the few sites in the world where human populations developed agriculture independent of other civilisations. The history of agriculture in PNG is about 10,000 years old, in light of the fact that human settlement in our region has been placed at 50,000 years ago.

Papua New Guineans have evolved as farmers over thousands of years with archaeological findings pointing drainage systems and vegetables such as taro being grown in the Wahgi valley in the Western Highlands. The richness of our agricultural produce is always on display at a nearby market, the venues becoming informal trading centres between vendors and customers from different cultural backgrounds and nationalities over the years.

The Koki market played a pivotal role in uniting Papua New Guineans from a multitude of ethnic groupings in Port Moresby, back in the colonial days to post-independence PNG. However, Port Moresby’s descent into a period of lawlessness in the 1990s which led to criminal attacks targeting both vendors and members of the public ensured its fall from grace.

However, the opening of a new Koki market yesterday by Prime Minister Peter O’Neill opens a new chapter for the historical venue and more opportunities for farmers from as far as the Rigo and Abau districts in the Central Province. One section of the market has been earmarked for sellers from that part of the Central Province, in recognition of the historical role that Abau and Rigo farmers played in the market of yesteryears.

Moresby South MP and Sports Minister Justin Tkatchenko should be commended for using funding from his electorate’s District Services Improvement Program to fund the public works programme. Hard working farmers from the Central Province, nearby Motu-Koitabu villages and urban settlements finally have a market to be proud off that would surely attract customers from the national capital.

Now that the market has been commissioned and is open for business, it is now up to the vendors, members of the public and nearby communities to look after the facilities and ensure its upkeep. This is where we believe education and awareness programs run by authorities including the National Capital District Commission (NCDC) is important. Papua New Guineans need to be educated on the need to be responsible for the upkeep of public facilities such as markets. Public facilities that lack community ownership often fall victim to vandalism, authorities need to put in place a strategy to ensure that is avoided and does not happen at the new market.

The Kokopo market in the East New Britain Province continues to set the benchmark in PNG in terms of offering a truly “Papua New Guinean market friendly” atmosphere for visitors and Kokopo residents alike. There is nothing stopping Koki from scaling those heights. There is no doubt that strict policing of market regulations by the Kokopo urban LLG and ENB residents embracing of the facility as their own is the secret behind their success: a formula that can also be replicated at Koki and in the NCD.

The bottom

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THE National Capital District Commission police reserve unit will be decommissioned and its vehicles, uniforms and firearms returned to the constabulary.

Police Commissioner Geoffrey Vaki issued the orders yesterday which also applied to the Bank South Pacific reserve unit.

The order to the NCDC police reserve came as a result of the Hanuabada shootings two weeks ago while the BSP reserve unit disbanding and decommissioning was because guards

were using police uniforms and firearms to perform security work for the commercial bank.

Acting deputy commissioner operations Jim Andrews said the NCDC would have to explore alternative options on how to enforce by-laws governing all municipalities within the city without the direct involvement of police.

He said the city rangers concept should be reintroduced and selected applicants should be trained and fairly remunerated to undertake this very chal-

lenging role of maintaining order and cleanliness.

“The police should only be called upon as and when the city rangers are faced with resistance from illegal betelnut traders and vendors, loiterers and other municipal law breakers, within the city,” he said.

Mr Andrews said the decision to disband and decommission the NCDC reserve unit was made by Mr Vaki to ensure proper care and management of the constabulary’s resources, more particularly the use of firearms. He said the

reserve and auxiliary concepts were scrapped during Commissioner Gari Baki’s tenure but reservations were made through signed MOAs with the mining companies, BSP Bank, Air Niugini and several provincial governments which were funding the upkeep of these reservists.

The RPNGC was going to review the concept with the aim of selecting applicants with good reputation and character to be re-enlisted into the constabulary, but the review was indefinitely shelfed.

FROM PAGE 1

IT was also a place for PNG public servants, plantation labourers and domestic help to meet over Mekeo buai and discuss local politics and the inter-territory rugby league clashes since drinking alcohol was prohibited back then.

As well as being the centre of trading during the colonial era, Koki housed a jail where some of the more notorious Papuans

were jailed and hanged. To restore some of this lost history, the reconstructed Koki market will now have a section dedicated to the Central and Motuan people to continue to ply their trade in the modern facility.

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill was guest of honour to rekindle some memories of those yesteryears, accompanied by Abau MP Sir Puka Temu, Rigo MP Ano Pala, NCD Governor Powes

Parkop, Finance Minister James Marape, Southern Highlands Governor William Powi and local MP Justin Tkatchenko. The new facilities cost K8 million – K5 million from the national Government and K3 million from NCDC and Moresby South district authority.

Mr Tkatchenko summed it up, saying the market has a traditional relationship between people of Central and Motu- Koitabu.

Tomatoes are botanically a fruit, but “legally” named vegetable in the US following a court case way back in 1893

“It is a long term relationship before independence, and we have embrace that relationship by putting in the market special locations and buildings for the people of Rigo, Abau, Hiri, Kairiku and Motu Koitabu, a traditional relationship that will be embraced into the future,” he said.

Mr O’Neill praised mothers at the market, saying the work involved in bringing produce to the market was not easy.

Historical city market now cleaner and safer

BY LEONNIE WAYANG

THE filth, unhealthy environment and petty crimes that have made Koki market infamous are no more – it has been transformed into a model selling place for vendors in the Moresby South electorate.

The revamped Koki market was opened yesterday in a joint effort between the National Government, National Capital District and Moresby South district.

“With the assistance of the National Government, NCDC (National Capital District Commission) through Governor Powes Parkop and my DSIP funds through my JDP of Moresby South, we have funded this market for

The bottom line

At a glance

HISTORY: The market was a trading avenue for the people of Central and the surrounding Motu-Koitabu villages to trade their goods.

FACILITIES: Nine new selling stalls, new male and female toilets, a market office and 36 small kiosks or shops to be operated by only locals.

K8 million,” Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko said.

“This market used to be absolutely disgusting; people were selling their produce like in a rubbish dump, disease-ridden, the place was filthy and no-one cared for the market.”

“With this market comes a lot of change for this area.”

The market structures, which are made of steel and cement to ensure longevity, would cater for vendors of cooked food, fresh fruits and vegetables.

Koki market will be looked after by the Moresby South market management board which has local participation and is funded by the NCDC.

Historically, the market was a trading avenue for the people of Central and the surrounding Motu-Koitabu villages who congregate to exchange their goods for many years.

In respecting this tradition, stall allocations were made especially for people

of Central Province. Koki market has nine new selling stalls, new male and female toilets, a market office and 36 small kiosks or shops that will be operated by Papua New Guineans only.

“The market is broken up into different groups the way the people wanted it; from our Eastern Highlanders to our Goilalas, to our Central people, to our Southern Highlanders to our Wabags and so on,” Mr Tkatchenko said.

Mr Parkop also urged the people to change their attitudes and use the facilities properly.

“We have done our part, now it’s your turn to do your part,” Mr Parkop said.

COPRA SHED

THE Pacific MMI building in NCD is not far from being turned into a copra shed. Its air condition problems over the last three weeks are serious enough to warrant a visit from the NCD health authorities, according to tenants.

EMBARRASSING

THE deteriorating condition and the failure by the landlord to get it fixed is an embarrassment when it has high profile organisations as its tenants. At the top of the tenancy list is the Korean Embassy and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

MACADAMIA

PROSECUTORS in South

Korea have recommended a three-year jail term for a Korean Air executive. She forced a flight back to New York so she could get a member of the cabin crew kicked off over the way her macadamia nuts were served.

NUT RAGE

KOREAN media have dubbed the controversy “nut rage”. It has seen the daughter of the Korean Air chairman, an airline executive and a transport

YOU’RE INVITED

ministry official appearing in court for breaching aviation law.

CRICKET UP

CRICKET has done it again for the country. Cricket PNG recently won the “Best Overall Cricket Development Programme” at the 2014 Pepsi International Cricket Council (ICC) East AsiaPacific (EAP) Annual Awards. Congratulations!

2014 SUCCESS

LAST year was a successful year for Cricket PNG. The country became the first nation in the EAP region to be given ODI status and went on to complete a successful ODI series against Hong Kong by winning both matches. Cricket PNG’s BSP School Kriket Programme is also PNG’s leading junior sports product with close to 200,000 children participating.

THINK BATS

OKAY we know he isn’t from Gotham City but that shouldn’t stop us from discussing bat conservation! Batman isn’t in town but American bat expert Dave Waldien is and you have a chance to hear him speak.

1.30pm to 2.30pm. The theme of his discussion? Bat conservation and bats are cool.

PENGEE: thedrum@spp.com.pg

A German photographer named Birk Mobius actually snapped a picture of a plane being struck by lightning inside a rainbow.

THE U.S. Embassy and American Corner Port Moresby invites you to a talk by Dave at the National Library today from

VEGETABLE vendors cheer as Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, NCD Governor Powes Parkop, Moresby South MP Justin Tkachenko and others take a tour of the market after its opening yesterday. Picture: TARAMI LEGEI

Toropo focused, determined

PAPUA New Guinea Defence Force Commander Brigadier General Gilbert Toropo remains focused with high expectations to see that his 2015 Commander’s statement of intent and priorities are achieved.

Speaking atg his retreat over the weekend at the Basilisk Naval Base in Port Moresby, Brig-Gen Toropo said this year will be the year of implementation.

He said even though it will be challenging with some of his 2014 priorities still outstand, he encouraged his staff to practice key leadership roles in implementing his intent and priorities.

The 2015 Commanders statement of intent and priorities has been launched in which most of the priorities were derived from the 2013 Defence White Paper, which is part of national Government’s requirements of the force.

Brig-Gen Toropo said this year he wants to see that fitness, discipline, professionalism and leadership is achieved at all levels of the Defence Force.

He also wants to see the force’s maritime capabilities improved.

Police union calls for sacking of top cops

SACK the entire police hierarchy, says Police Association general secretary Clemence Kanau.

Mr Kanau made the call yesterday following the general breakdown of command and control in the police force in the first month of this year.

“Despite our continuous effort to improve our members’ working conditions in welfare, salary and accommodation, we seem to have deep rooted problems in the code of conduct of our members which, the police union believes, is a sign of bad leadership in the police

New system to help monitor funds

BY SAMUEL RAITANO

TAXPAYER’S monies can now be monitored and used transparently in the Department of Justice and Attorney General (DJAG).

This followed yesterday’s launching of the integrated financial management system (IFMS); a budgeting and accounting program aimed to give greater transparency and accountability.

Finance and DJAG secretaries Ken Nangan and Lawrence Kalinoe officiated at the launching before the departments’ staff and the media.

Mr Kalinoe said he was pleased that his department was the first government agency to link up to the system which has been used by the departments of Treasury, Finance and National Planning for the last three years.

Meanwhile, Mr Nangan said the Finance Department is also looking at possibly linking up all districts to the system so that information on cheques they write and other financial transaction of public monies will automatically be available for the headquarter in Port Moresby to view.

At a glance

SACK: The Police Association general secretary has called for the mass sacking of the entire police hierarchy.

POOR SHOW: He made this call following the general breakdown of command and control in the police force during the first month of this year.

BLAME: He also attributes lack of discipline in the force to the poor handling of the force by the current hierarchy’s leadership.

POTENTIAL: It is his opinion that there are young men and women already within the system who have the potential to rebuild the force and instill once more the pride of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary if given the chance.

DISCIPLINE: Remains the RPNGC’s biggest hurdle after wide spread media coverage into the recklessness of policemen.

force,” Mr Kanau said. He said it is those in command and control of the

force, which may be regarded as the catalysts for the trend of rising misdemeanour. He

It takes six months to build a Rolls

urged the Government to make a full change to the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC). Mr Kanau said there should be a complete change in the top police hierarchy, which had failed to command and preserve discipline in the RPNGC.

“We need to replace senior officers who are content with the uniform they wear and who have grown stagnant in the organisation.

“We need new leadership in the police force. People with vision who can see beyond and who can change with the time and lead a dis-

and 13 hours to build a Toyota.

ciplined force,” he said.

Mr Kanau added that the police union believes there were brilliant and disciplined young police officers who had come up the rank, matured and who were ready for senior appointment. For that cause, he also called on the Government to look at rebuilding the pride and status of the RPNGC through these officers.

He said the Police Commissioner, Deputy Police Commissioner and all the Assistant Police Commissioners must explain why they have allowed discipline to erode.

This means all departments linked to the system will be aware of the transactions going on regarding public funds.

The other advantage of the IFMS is that monies earmarked for a specific purpose will be locked and cannot be diverted to other purposes.

The system is designed to protect the funds locked in so that anomalies in figures transacted will be revealed, making it near impossible to divert funds and operations on paper figures.

The Prime Ministers Department and the National Executive Council will be the next to link up to the system soon.

PNGDF Commander Brigadier-General Gilbert Toropo briefing his 2015 intent and priorities to Defence heads and directors at Basilisk Naval base in Port Moresby last Saturday.

30 more refugees to settle in PNG

PAPUA New Guinea has granted refugee status to 30 additional asylum seekers at the Manus asylum centre, Foreign Affairs and Immigration Minister Rimbink Pato announced on Monday.

Mr Pato, who met with Australian Immigration Minister Peter Dutton, said this brings to 80 the number of asylum seekers who were now being processed and would be resettled in PNG when all documentations were in place.

“Once a policy on the resettlement process has been finalised by a group of eminent persons, it is quite clear that a transition towards resettlement has commenced,” Mr Pato said.

“Nine of the 80 asylum seekers were considered genuine refugees for the purpose of resettlement in PNG, they have left the processing centre and they’ve moved on to the East Lorengau transit centre, awaiting the final decision on the policy for resettlement in different parts of PNG,” he said.

“In relations to those who have been determined as persons not eligible for settlement or are found not to be genuine refugees where two men have agreed to leave PNG.

“However, 80 of the genuine refugees have sought the review of the decision. As soon as the review decision comes down, we will have them removed under the arrangements we have with the Australian Government.”

Tribunal to hear clerk’s charges

BY GORETHY KENNETH

CHIEF Justice Sir Salamo

Injia has appointed a Leadership Tribunal to inquire into various allegations of misconduct in office against the Clerk of Parliament, Vele Konivaro.

It will comprise serving judges Derek Hartshorn as the chairman, Sir Kina Bona and Martin Ipang.

At a glance

GRANT: PNG has granted 30 more refugee status to the Manus asylum seekers.

RIMBINK PATO: He is the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration.

PETER DUTTON : He is the Australian Immigration Minister.

GENUINE: Nine of the 80 asylum seekers were considered genuine refugees to resettle in PNG.

TERMS: If a person comes to a country to seek asylum, their refugee status will then be assessed by the host country.

He made it clear that the Australia Government would be expected to shoulder costs associated with those resettlements.

Australia had promised support but Mr Dutton said it was a domestic matter for PNG.

An asylum seeker is a person who fled from their country but is not accepted yet as a refugee. Refugees and asylum seekers are different.

The decision whether a person is a refugee or not is most often left to certain government agencies within the host country.

If a person comes to a country to seek asylum, their refugee status will then be assessed.

The government decides whether the person is in danger, or if they are just trying to come to that country for free.

Man attacked during rescue

BY GRACE AUKA SALMANG

A POST-Courier staff escaped death while assisting a victim of carjacking in the early hours of yesterday morning at the Konedobu roundabout in Port Moresby.

According to the company’s production manager Malcolm Harvey, the staff (named) who is believed to be a driver, was returning to the office after doing late night drop-offs for staff when he was attacked.

Mr Harvey said between 2am and 2.15am, as his staff was returning to the office, he saw a family being attacked beside the road at Harbour City.

“He (staff) saw the criminals attacking the driver of the vehicle so he stopped to assist the victim and his family,” Mr Harvey said.

“When the rascals saw

He assisted the victim with multiple stab wounds

MALCOLM HARVEY

Port Moresby

him, they quickly jumped into the victim’s vehicle and drove off.

“He assisted the victim with multiple stab wounds and his family onto the company vehicle to take them to hospital.

“While he was getting onto the vehicle to drive off, the rascals came back to the PC staff and stabbed him several times in the neck, shoulder blade and arm,” Mr Harvey said.

Mr Harvey said after his staff was attacked he was in a state of shock so he

drove the vehicle onto the concrete roundabout.

“Another vehicle came to their rescue and took the family from the company vehicle and rushed them to the hospital

“As soon as the other vehicle left, the rascals came back for him as one of them was shouting sutim em! (shoot him).”

The PC staff managed to escape and jumped into the drain beside the Konedobu oval to hide as the rascals kept driving around looking for him

He crawled along the drain to the far end of the Puma Energy office building where he hid in the dark, made his way up outside the Aviat Club and then came back through the back track of the road to the office where he collapsed and was taken to the hospital by Mr Harvey.

The tribunal will begin its hearing at 9.30am on Monday, March 1, at courtroom 6 at the court building at Waigani, Port Moresby.

Sir Salamo said: “The allegations against Mr Konivaro ranged from unauthorised alteration of bills to the misuse of public funds”.

He said the appointment of the tribunal was withheld to allow for court proceedings instituted by the suspended clerk to be finalised.

These proceedings were finalised in October last year, Sir Salamo said.

“This was after the suspended Clerk of Parliament, Vele Konivaro, submitted an application to review the Parliament Speaker’s decision to suspend him was dismissed by the National Court late last month,” Sir Salamo said.

Mr Konivaro took the Parliament Speaker Theodore Zurenuoc, the National Executive Council and the State to court challenging his suspension.

The National Court refused the relief sought by Mr Konivaro in August last year.

He was seeking a judicial review of the decision, a referral to tribunal for investigations, discussion for procedure for suspension and referral, breach of natural justice discussed, denial of right to be heard available and the Section 59 of the Organic Law on Certain Constitution Office Holders, to name a few.

MR Harvey said after his staff was attacked, the driver was in a state of shock

so he drove the vehicle onto the concrete roundabout.

Hydro power has potential

BY HAIVETA KIVIA

PNG Power Limited branches outside of Port Moresby will be turned into profit making centres, says Public Business and State Enterprises Minister Ben Micah.

Mr Micah said all PPL branches and centres will keep the revenue it collected in their respective centres and pay its own bills.

He said: “After paying all its bills and if three toea is left then it can be remitted to Port Moresby”.

Mr Micah said many times, the centres send all its revenue to Port Moresby and Port Moresby pays its bills and often forgets the provinces and its other establishments.

He said by keeping the revenue back in the centres and prudently managed, the company can be able to meet many of the customers’ requirements and faults.

Mr Micah said maintenance works can also be carried swiftly and efficiently.

Lae Chamber of Commerce and Industry President, Alan McLay, said they liked the idea of the profit making centres and keeping the generated revenue back where it belongs to improve efficiency and reliability in electricity supply.

Mr McLay said electricity supply in Lae was a big issue and a pressing one but he is happy that PPL and other State Owned Enterprises are now members of the chamber and are keeping it informed of all issues.

“Whether it is bad news or good news, members of the chambers are well informed and that is a good thing,” he said.

Mr McLay was also happy with the stand-by power generator now able to be sourced in Lae.

NEW CLASSROOMS

PNG Power has K70m in the bank

DEBT ridden and cash strapped, PNG Power Limited is now in the black and has recovered K70 million in debts.

According to Public Business and State Enterprises Minister Ben Micah, PNG Power now has K30-K50 million sitting in its operating account, monies that it never had two months back.

Mr Micah told PPL employees yesterday in Lae on the efforts and recoveries carried out regarding the State of Emergency. Mr Micah, the Controller of the State of Emergency, navy

Captain Tom Ur and PPL’s chief operating officer, John Yanis, are touring all PPL establishments in the country.

They were in Kokopo no Monday morning and Kavieng in the afternoon.

Yesterday they were in Lae, spent the night in Madang and spoke to the chamber of commerce and provincial leaders there.

Mr Micah told PPL staff in Lae that the company owed BSP K45 million in overdrafts just before Christmas and the scenario was useless. “The Government’s intervention and the SOE

imposed were able to repay the overdraft, and put the PPL bank account back in black.

“The Department of Finance was instructed to make available K45 million to pay off the overdraft and we are now proud to say that PPL has between K30 to K50 million in its account,” Mr Micah said.

He said two months back, owed BSP and its consortium of financiers money.

“PPL was absolutely broke and was about to be declared insolvent so that the bank could recover its debts,” Mr Micah said.

He added that PPL owed money over the required overdraft set by the bank but BSP continued to give it overdraft because of the vital and essential services it provided.

Mr Micah said the facility had to be stopped because it was unpayable and the bank needed to recover its losses. But he said the SOE is not only about recovering the bad debts but also looking at all the functions of the company.

Captain Ur said that the SOE is all about getting PNG Power up and running to do its job.

HYDRO power potential in Papua New Guinea can be exported to Australia and maintained for years but to build it would be every expensive.

Public Business and State Enterprises Minister, Ben Micah said this when addressing the Lae Chamber of Commerce on the national Government’s efforts through the State of Emergency to arrest PNG Power from its free fall.

PNG Power was in overdraft amounting to K45 million with no hard cash to run the daily affairs of the company.

Further still, it had no money in the reserves, with unpaid bills from customers amounting K160 million and it did not know how to recover the debt.

Mr Micah said power generation in PNG is diverse with its natural resources, but how best this sources are generated needs to be planned meticulously and for it to bring much needed revenue to the Government and all stakeholders.

He said the hydro electricity potential of Purari in Gulf Province was huge, the Ramu 2 in Esatern Highlands Province can generate 200 megawatts, while the Nara-Brown in Central can output 70 megawatts.

He said these are all electricity sources that can power the whole country with surplus that can be exported to Australia.

Mr Micah said Purari can generate 10,000 megawatts of electricity and it is all the power that is needed in PNG. Surplus from other hydro power plants can be exported to Queensland and the far north of Australia.

He said to build a 10,000 megawatt power station at the cost of three US cent per kilowatt is huge cost and good consortium of financiers must be found to partner the government.

Lack of budget ‘shocks’ controller

PNG Power Limited as a company had no annual budget, says a shocked controller of the state of emergency, Tom Ur.

The company also had the potential to outplay Air Niugini as the biggest earner for all State-owned businesses. Air Niugini makes about K1.25 billion in revenue and PNG Power makes K900 million annually, he said.

It has the potential to make over K2-K3 billion, says Public Business and State Enterprises Minister, Ben Micah.

Mr Micah and Captain Ur were in Lae yesterday to look at the PPL establishments and had an audience with the PPL staff.

Mr Ur told the employees that their company had no

annual budget and it was amazing how they got away with it.

“I was shocked to have learnt that the company did not have a budget.

“We are now getting in there and slowly turning things around,” Mr Ur said.

He said PPL was like an old sick mother, whom the husband couldn’t look after well and relatives had to be called in to take care of her.

Mr Ur said he and Mr Micah have been able to nurture back to health, bringing her out of the “Intensive Care Unit”.

“She is now sitting up and talking but her legs and arms are still weak, and she needs more care,” he said.

The controller was referring to the poor financial situation the state owned company was in and all the bad debts which are yet to be recovered.

Mr Micah said PPL is now making K900 million annually but if it collect all its debt, it can double its earnings up to K2 billion. He said it was one of the reasons the chief finance officer was fired and a recovery process by the way of a state of emergency. He said K500 million out of the K900 mil-

lion was eaten up by fuel for thermal power plants right throughout the country.

“K300 million went to maintenance as well as aging equipment and plants, the costs are raising every year unless the aging plants are replaced,” Mr Micah said.

Mr Ur said PPL has huge potential if it recovers all the money it is owed to improve its electricity generation capabilities.

He said before the SOE was imposed the company was collecting K1.3 million daily nationwide.

Since the SOE, PPL is counting K3.6 million daily, and can eventually increase to K5 million in its daily revenue collection. He said it must stay there and be improved on.

NULENDI Primary School in the mountains of Kieta District in Central Bougainville was the happy beneficiary of four new classrooms. The classrooms were jointly opened by Central Bougainville MP Jimmy Miringtoro and Autonomous Bougainville Government Member for North Nasioi Constituency, Nicholas Darku. Pictured is the new four-in-one classroom at the school’s opening at the weekend. Picture: PHILIP KAMUKA

I was shocked to learn that the company did not have a budget

CAPTAIN TOM UR Lae, Morobe Province

Business helps city street children

BY MAUREEN GERAWA

A PORT Moresby-based businessman has appealed to business houses and others to help ensure street children and orphans go to school.

Jim Gui, group general manager/executive director of Nambawan Trophy Limited (NWTL) made the appeal yesterday after earlier opening an expense account to help Port Moresby street children assisted by Life PNG Care, a home run by Collin Pake and wife Freda.

“Due to the urgency of getting the kids to school, I have given a budget of K5000 to (a) shop for school related items only,’’ he said.

Using the account, an arrangement has been made with the shop where the children can go and collect these things, he said.

“Education is very important. Some of us take it for granted but I have to set this up to get the kids to school, but I’d like to do more, for instance, how to groom them.’’

Mr Gui, who has a staff of 1300, came to the aid of the children after he read the Post-Courier front page story on Monday about Life PNG

Care’s registered 40 street children preparing to go to school this year but lacked the money to buy uniforms and stationeries, among others. He said he planned to visit Life PNG Care and explore possible future help.

“We are not only interested in helping with cash, we want to see how to help sustain this foundation,’’ said Mr Gui.

“I really want business houses to come in and help. I can’t do it alone. Collin can’t do it alone.’’

The Government’s free tuition fee for schools does not cover uniforms, stationeries, bus fare and lunch so the Pakes have to provide these things in order for the 40 children to go to school.

Mr Pake works in the Auditor-General’s office and uses his own income to help these children most of the time.

Disabled centre closed without warning

CHILDREN with disabilities who turned up for the 2015 academic year in Lae, Morobe Province, were denied access to their school.

For reasons not known by the children, the Morobe Special Education Resource Centre coordinator George Lalaoia had all classrooms as well as the main gate locked.

On Monday, the teachers who went to resume duties were told by Mr Lalaoia to return home as the school was closed.

Yesterday, parents who went to the centre to register and enroll their children were surprised that the school was closed.

A heated argument took place at the school premises for almost an hour where parents demanded an immediate explanation from Mr Lalaoia why the school would be closed.

The angry parents called for immediate removal of Mr Lalaoia because of the decision that would affect innocent children, especially those with disabilities.

Morobe Special Education Resource Centre Elementary inclusive officer Naomi Ringe told the Post-Courier that the teachers were not aware of such a decision to close the special school and students with disabilities will be enrolled at the main stream schools to continue with their learning.

STREET kids like this young lad are becoming a common sight in major cities throughout the country. In Port Moresby a local couple have set up a foundation, Life PNG Care, for these unfortunate children and are looking to give them a better chance at life.

NGO aims to better life

THE Papua New Guinea Christian Community Services (PNGCCS) is playing a crucial role to comfort a generation of children in urgent need of guidance and opportunity.

Majority of those unfortunate children have come from settlements in the cities where there is a dramatic breakdown in the social support structure for individuals and families.

Therefore, the non-profit organisation has recognised and is placing value upon humanity at the grassroots level to protect and boost their choices to make the future bright for them.

“Societal issues such as crime, violence, neglect, poor nutrition,

alcohol abuse and increase in the education levels has greatly affected young innocent children silently,” said Tom Lepatu, the Board chairman of PNGCCS.

Mr Lepatu said following those issues, unemployment, poverty, poor health system, death and violence are also taking a toll on living standards and are pressing PNG into facing a crisis in managing chronic poverty combined with the effects of HIV/ AIDS epidemic and other life style diseases. “PNGCCS is working close and hard to rescue those affected children because helping people with real needs to help themselves and others at the same time are ways forward

to empower people and release potential within local communities,” Mr Lepatu said.

The PNGCCS was established in 2006 by Late Reverend Joseph Yans Lepatu and his wife Maria Lepatu with the mandate to restore and strengthen children and families to engage in healthy living and life skills education as its aim is to choose to be part of the solution and not just part of the problem.

The organisation has plans for a Family & Community Life Centre building program in NCD which will provide continuum and expansion of The Strongim Pikinini Program and other initiatives of Life PNG.

Authority to establish national youth program

THE National Youth Development Authority, formerly known as National Youth Commission will be visiting all major regions in the country starting this month.

This is to open-up dialogue and foster long term partnership arrangements with the provinces, districts and local level governments and administrations specifically in areas of developing human capital and enhanc-

ing our young peoples’ quality of life.

A team comprising of senior officers from Department of Personnel Management, Provincial Affairs and National Youth Development Authority (NYDA) will be led by acting director general Norit Luio.

They will conduct meetings purposely to establish long term dialogue partnership and arrangements with the provin-

cial and district administrations so that youth programs will be effectively rolled out at all levels in the country.

The nationwide consultation exercise is part of NYDA’s major restructure and reorganisation of its core function and responsibilities consistent with the proposed law on the National Youth Development Authority under the National Youth Development Authority Act 2014.

“I t s a slap on the face, we were told to look for another school just when we were to resume duties, three of our colleagues were also removed from the school,” she said. She claims some facilities in the school are being used by another school.

I really want business houses to come in and help ...

JIM K.A GUI Port Moresby

B’ville faces crucial year

THIS year marks a very important year for Bougainville as the people prepare for the elections and the window for referendum opens in June.

It will be for the third time a general election is going to be held and the first time the public will discuss referendum at the local and government level.

Referendum was only discussed at the government level in the past.

Because the media will play an important role in featuring what the people will discuss in regards to the referendum, it is expected to report responsibly in covering free and fair elections leading to the referendum in 2020.

To ensure that there is mutual understanding at the political level, community and media, the mainstream media in Bougainville will meet with the president of Autonomous Bougainville Government John Momis at a dinner where he will speak as the Minister responsible for Media in Bougainville

This will be the first time the president will address the media personnel and journalists at the dinner as the Minister for Communications and Media.

The dinner will start at 6pm and finish at 10.

This is also an opportunity for media personnel to meet, greet and forge a professional network that will become

Car thefts surge in Lae

BY FRANKIY KAPIN

THERE is an upsurge in car theftsin Lae city with intent to committing further crimes, city police say.

At a glance

ELECTION: This year’s general election will be the Boungainville’s third since it was granted the autonomous status.

REFERENDUM TALKS: The referendum will for the first time be discussed at the local level government this year.

MEDIA ROLE: The Bougainville Media is gearing up to relaying what will be discussed about referendum to wide cross section of Bogainville society

helpful to everyone.

Director of the bureau of public affairs, media and communication, Robert Anesia will also present the work plan of the bureau for this year.

New chief secretary Monovi Amani will witness the event as the head of public servants.

Those invited to attend this low profile event are asked to confirm their invitations.

Only invited guests are allowed.

Another dinner will be held with non-governmental organisations and chief executive officers of key development partners. There are plans to have a gathering with the ex-combatants as well.

FORKLIFT

WITH CREW

THIS forklift from a business house in Arawa town was negotiating its way around the street filled with potholes when the Post-Courier caught up with it. As usual the ‘boskru’ (crew) will still hop on finding a little space to hang on which is not a problem at all for traffic in the former BCL township. Picture: ROMULUS MASIU

Third hit and run victim succumbs to injuries

GRADE 10 student Junior

Anton who survived the fatal road accident which claimed the lives of two fellow students in Jiwaka Province on Monday morning has died at Mt Hagen General Hospital.

He was rushed to hospital but never regained consciousness, succumbing to his injuries on Monday night, 12 hours after admittance, the hospital said yesterday.

Grade 10 student Angra

Simon and Grade 12 student Stanley Rangi died along the Highlands Highway at Kindeng. All three were walking to school on Monday, the first day of the 2015 school year,

when a vehicle travelling at high speed, ran off the highway and into their back.

The Grade 10 students were from the Roalka tribe and Rangi was from the Walepka tribe in the Dei district of

Western Highlands Province. The students walked for two hours to get to Anglimp when they were hit by the vehicle. The driver of the vehicle is behind bars at the Banz police station with the vehicle.

Acting Lae Metropolitan Superintendent Timothy Pomoso made this observation in light of two car thefts in Morobe Province yesterday. One car theft incident occurred in the township of Ramu and the other winthin Lae city.

Supt Pomoso said four arm men dressed as workmen of Laga Industries held up the manager of Super Value Store at Ramu at 10am yesterday.

Supt Pomoso said the information was relayed to him by his men on patrol to the look out for the getaway vehicle, a dark blue Toyota Land Cruiser.

He said the robbers held up the manager and got away with a substantial amount of money that comprises the takings for the last week as well as the weekend.

Supt Pomoso said the robbers were armed with three factory made pistols and a hand grenade when they held up the shop manager.

An employee of the Ramu SVS when contacted yesterday confirmed that the manager was robbed.

The manager could not comment as he had to get approval from the SVS head office first.

He said police had located the getaway vehicle at Black Wara in Markham district.

Supt Pomoso said it was believed the robbers abandoned the vehicle and used another vehicle to travel into Lae city.

He said at the moment the robbers were still at large.

Supt Pomoso is appealing to the public to report any suspicions.

Meanwhile, Supt Pomoso confirmed that a 10 seater belonging to the University of Technology in Lae was stolen yesterday afternoon.

He said GPS equipment installed in the vehicle reported the vehicle to be within the city and police are closing in on the robbers. Supt Pomoso appeals to car owners and the public to be vigilant.

OK Tedi landowners urge government to do social mapping

THE Faiwolmin Landowners Association of the giant OK Tedi mine has urged the Government through a petition presented to North Fly MP and Minister for Culture and Tourism Boka Kondra to look into conducting proper social mapping on Ok Tedi mine area.

This was revealed by local consultant and chairman of the association Alex Bernard yesterday while presenting

their grievances with the chiefs to Minister Boka Kondra.

Mr Bernard claimed that since the first agreement in 1976, there had been no proper social mapping done and no true landowners stood to sign the agreement with the the government.

He further claimed that since the beginning of the mining operation in Mt Fubilan, no proper full scale so-

cial mapping, clan mapping and land demarcations had been done to identify the true landowners.

He said they had come up with a book to be presented to the Prime Minister Peter O’Neill about this matter and requested him to immediately look into conducting fully scale social mapping.

“Number one OK Tedi Mt Fubilan is one time bigger while the number two OK

Tedi Townsville is ten times bigger so before the start of number two OK Tedi, the Government must take immediate action into conducting fully scale social mapping,” he said.

He claimed that since the beginning of the mine and agreements after agreements, the true clans or true landowners had not been identified and as such they had not participated in the debate and

signing of the agreements with the government and the developers.

He said only would identify the true landowners and give the right title back to the rightful landowners.

“We want full scale social mapping so the true landowners identified can then form Incorporated Land Groups (ILGs) through clan vetting system,” Mr Bernard said.

Minister for Culture and

Tourism and North Fly Member Boka Kondra while receiving their grievances has pledged to support them and bring the matter up to National Executive Council.

Minster Kondra said he supported the idea of Faiwolmin Association to do proper social mapping.

“I support the proposal to do proper social mapping and will work it Faiwolmin association,” he said.

PNG woman returns from world meet

A PAPUA New Guinea woman has just returned from a one-year internship with the World office of the Young Women’s Christian Association in Geneva. Sharon Yengevende was based in Geneva but the internship program took her to different parts of the world.

“If I had one unforgettable memory I would bring all the fun filled moments in 2014 during my internship with the World YWCA, whether it be here in Switzerland or in other countries,” she said.

Kandep MP loses court bid

BY JACOB POK

A BID by Kandep MP Don Polye to review a court decision in relation to an earlier objection to competency application in an election petition case against him was dismissed by the Supreme Court yesterday. The matter arose from an election petition filed by lawyer Alfred Manase disputing Mr Polye’s election victory as Kandep MP.

Mr Manase, who was named as the first respondent in the proceedings, was the runner-up in the 2012 National Election in the Kandep Open seat.

Mr Polye, the Opposition Leader, filed the application in a bid to seek leave to review the decision, among others. The decision

Mr Polye sought to review was by Justice Joseph Yagi which was handed down on September 9, 2014, wherein

Justice Yagi upheld, in part, Mr Polye’s objection to competency and struck out certain allegations pleaded in the petition and dismissed the rest of the objection.

The gist of the objection was that Mr Manase as petitioner failed to plead sufficient material facts in support of allegations of errors and omissions committed in the appointment of the returning officer, errors and omissions and illegal prac-

tices committed at counting. The decision allowed Mr Manase to proceed to trial to prove the remaining allegations. Mr Polye’s lawyers submitted that since the decision did not finally terminate the proceedings, hence not reviewable, dispensation was required and therefore being sought.

They submitted that if granted, Mr Polye would seek to review the decision pursuant to section 155(2)(b)

of the Constitution.

The matter went before Justice Colin Makail who went through the proceedings, weight submissions from both parties and concluded that there were no meritorious grounds raised in the application.

The judge found that most of the grounds raised in the application were mischievous and misconceived thereby dismissing the entire proceedings.

“It would also be waking up in the snows, watching football in Liverpool, celebrating my birthday in Yvoire, France (taking a ferry), cultural dances in Tanzania, at the netball courts with the Geneva Netball team, patting a cab at the lion park in South Africa, enjoying the sun and beautiful beach in Athens, Greece and the Mediterranean Sea, enjoying the view up in the Saleve, France-Geneva, speaking Spanish in Bogota, celebrating pre-wedding parties in Bangkok, visiting the Vatican City in Rome and many more. All in the name of work and holidays.’’ Ms Yengevende works with the YWCA PNG office in Lae.

A HUGE crowd braved the sweltering city heat yesteday to witness the opening of the re-constructed Koki market in the nation’s capital. The market is the oldest in Port Moresby, set up in the colonial days, and is steeped in history. The picture here shows part of the crowd

Jetty relocation suspicious, says deputy governor

NO PROPER documents were presented to the Morobe Provincial Executive Council to arrange for the relocation of a jetty for local dingy operators, PEC members say.

Deputy governor Judas Nalau said neither the governor’s office nor the lord mayor’s office were informed of the arrangement.

“We’ve noted that the National Fisheries Authority (NFA) has arranged funds to have the local jetty area to be developed and that is quite suspicious,” Mr Nalau said.

“If officers in the provincial administration are not properly informing us of such arrangements, then how is the PEC going to explain to the local people, as to what actually is happening?” Mr Nalau queried.

Morobe Provincial Fisheries minister

Philemon Tomala said a senior officer from the Morobe Provincial Fisheries Authority had told him of the arrangement. He said lack of cooperation from investors and the provincial administration often leads to inconveniences in the provincial government office.

“I’m aware that the project is funded by the National Fisheries Authority and they’ve arranged for the China Harbour’s dredging machines to have the clear the sand away so that the wharf is recreated,” Mr Tomala said.

Christian envoy to visit PNG

BY DENYSE KALAU

A HIGH ranking official of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem in Israel is due to visit Papua New Guinea next week.

The Embassy is a global ministry founded in 1980 representing churches, denominations and millions of Christians worldwide who share a love and concern for Israel and who seek to repair the historic breach between the Church and the Jewish people.

The ICEJ recognises in the modern-day restoration of Israel, the faithfulness of God to keep His ancient covenant promises to the Jewish people. The arrangement for the PNG visit had been done by local ICEJ office and its national director Pastor Bezalel Tegi.

He said that the ICEJ international director Reverend Juha Ketola will visit PNG from February 9 to 15 and take in Port Moresby, Mt Hagen and Nipa in Southern Highlands Province.

“As our country turns 40 years old, there is a belief that it marks God’s prophetic timing for a nation, and for God to send his servant here all the way from Jerusalem means something good for PNG,” Pr Bezalel said.

He said Rev Ketola and his delegation were here for a national conference at these three venues.

He said the Body of Christ network in PNG was aware of this event and was preparing to take part as local churches in Hela, Southern Highlands Province, Mt Hagen and Central Province and Port Moresby.

School pays price for land dispute

WHILE it is back to school for most, students and teachers of Gaire Primary School in Central Province have been locked out of their school grounds by two clans claiming ownership of the land.

On Monday morning, the start of the academic year, Doudou clan members locked the school gates with chains which the other Geabada clan members removed with bolt cutters to allow the teachers and students to enter the school premises.

This is not the first time this has happened relating to this particular piece of land.

Doudou clan chairman Hera Sere said his clansmen closed the school gates because the Central Provincial Government had not paid the clan K2.6 million in overdue rentals.

He said that a lease agreement signed in 1965 had expired in 1990 and had not been renewed for the past 25 years.

University blasts

‘incompetent’ OHE

BY FRANKIY KAPIN

UNIVERSITY of Technology

vice-chancellor Dr Albert Schram yesterday blasted the Department of Higher Education’s continued lack of foresight, planning and community capability as he welcomed the academic year to an almost empty campus. Only 200 of the 3000 students registered had turned up for the start of the year, the majority are still waiting for their airfares.

“In short, because of incompetence,” said Dr Schram, adding that 700 students have enrolled for their first year.

“If we want things to change in this country, as academic leaders we need to name them using the appropriate words (incompetence), and recognise reality. Only then,

UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY: The Papua New Guinea University of Technology or ‘Unitech’ is located outside of Lae, in the Morobe Province.

STUDENT INTAKE FOR 2015: 3000 students have registered to attend the university, however, on the first day of the academic year only 200 students are on campus with the remaining 700 still waiting for their airfares.

can we hope, change eventually will happen,” he told the 200 students and staff. He said the Department of Higher Education simply lacked budget management skills therefore this fiasco was repeated year after year. He will raise the matter with the Minister Malakai Tabar who is due to visit Unitech tomorrow.

With expectations on students to study in a positive learning environment, Dr

Dr Schrams said so too was the faculty and staff ready to provide teaching and facilities for research in line with Unitech’s mission. He said the Unitech had vacancies for 100 academics with a PhD.

“In particular, in science and engineering it is difficult to attract and retain qualified academics with a PhD. This will be required if we want to produce internationally accredited engi-

neers, which we have never been able to do.

“The government was funding a program which would allow us to achieve accreditation according to the Washington Accords, but has withdrawn the funding.”

On Unitech generally, the Vice-Chancellor said that regrettably, the university did not receive any funding to expand or build new academic buildings as the institution heads into its golden jubilee 50th anniversary next year.

Dr Schram said to commemorate the anniversary next year they would be the refurbishing of the library and constructing a new multi-purpose hall.

Unitech’s orientation registration will run for the rest of the week.

Australian aid sought to build university

BY GORETHY KENNETH

THE Government is still in talks with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) in Australia to provide assistance for the establishment of the Western Pacific University (WPU).

This would be the biggest applied technology-based university in PNG being planned for the IalibuPangia district of Southern

Highlands Province.

RMIT assistance is being sought to determine the number of faculties, setting up of curriculums and training of skilled Papua New Guineans.

Higher Education Minister

Malakai Tabar told the PostCourier yesterday that an updated report on the talks would be released later.

Initial reports suggested that the process for building the university was already

underway and first enrolments were expected in 2017.

Early last year, Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, in whose electorate the university would be sited, announced that the government had allocated K80 million in the 2014 Budget with funding made available through a Chinese government grant to build the university.

Immediately after the announcement, preparatory

work and designing were carried out where the university would be built, at the old Ialibu airstrip, which is State land.

The university would enroll up to 3000 students, bringing in 200 to 300 teachers, which would increase business activities and development of the Ialibu town.

At full capacity Western Pacific University (WPU) could enroll up to 6000 students.

Geabada clansman John Rea said the Doudou clan should not shut down the school because innocent children of the village would suffer.

“The matter should be handled legally between the provincial government and the landowners, without jeopardising the welfare of children,” Mr Rea said.

The provincial education senior inspector Patrick Dimsock was on the ground to hear the villagers’ complaints. The Central Provincial Government has been given four weeks to renew the lease and reach an understanding on the outstanding K2.6 million.

Western teachers to get leave fares

THE Fly River Provincial Government has assured its teachers that their outstanding leave fare entitlements will be addressed and what is due will be given.

Acting administrator Modowa Gumoi said this yesterday when responding to media queries that funds totalling more than K1 million were allocated last year for teachers leave fares.

“We now have the money and we will pay out,” he said, noting there had been a backlog which had never been addressed until he assumed office last year.

He said it was the national Government’s responsibility to pay leave fares, the province only assists if there were shortfalls.

Last year, one of the main reasons for the delay of leave fares was late submissions by teachers. He said the provincial government has allocated K5 million annually for students attending tertiary institutions around the country.

OUTBOARD motor dinghies operators looking for temporary spots to collect their passengers.

Jailed MP applies for bail

BY JACOB POK

JAILED Komo-Magarima

MP Francis Potape appeared at the Waigani National Court yesterday before Chief Justice Sir Salamo Injia for the directions hearing for his bail application. He was escorted by Correctional Service officers into a court packed with relatives and supporters.

At the hearing, Mr Potape’s

lawyer, Justin Haiara sought for an adjournment to file a fresh application since argument arose over one of the grounds raised in the current application. The application was based on two main grounds, first was that there was good prospect or chance for success in the appeal against the conviction and the second relates to medical grounds.

However the State lawyer

Govt agencies urged to link up

BY SAMUEL RAITANO

ALL government departments and agencies should switch to the integrated financial management system (IFMS) in order to account for the public monies they handle.

Andres Rehbein, the director for Agile Business Transitions, which is specialised in setting up the system, said this yesterday at the launching of the system by the Department of Justice and Attorney General.

Mr Rehbein said 18 government agencies are expected to link up to the system this year. He said the system will assist in service delivery by transmitting the transactions in real time to the relevant offices.

“The system allows for tighter financial control, and the processes will be visible and transparent. The risk of a department spending money that they don’t have will be reduced, and there will be less risk of making errors,” Mr Rehbein said.

Western Governor denies allegations

WESTERN Governor Ati Wobiro has denied allegations that he misappropriated funds totalling K7 million leading to his arrest on Monday. He told a media conference yesterday in Port Moresby that he would fight the case before the courts. Mr Wobiro was flanked by deputy governor Abine Gesele, provincial executive council members and acting administrator Dr Modowa Gumo.

He said that in a previous case, the court had cleared his name and he was determined to clear his name again.

Mr Wobiro thanked the people of Western Province for their understanding and their support in standing by him and administrator Gumoi. “We have to clear the province and do the right thing and clear wrongs done in the past.

“I appeal to leaders of the province, we have a mandate to the people who have voted us into office. That mandate is to deliver and it is unfair to people when petty politics get in the way of our ability to deliver these services,” he said.

Wartoto trial date reset

BY SAMUEL RAITANO

BUSINESSMAN Eremas Wartoto and the state have been directed by the National Court to submit pre-trial statements by February 16. This will allow for a date to be set for trial for the five separate charges laid against Wartoto, which involve allegations of misappropriation, false pretence, conspiracy and money laundering.

Mr Wartoto briefly appeared in court yesterday but his lawyer was not able to stand before the bar. Terry Injia from Steeles Lawyers stepped in to assist with obtaining permissions to have parties prepare pre-trial statements.

Deputy Chief Justice Gibbs Salika said the trial date will be set on February 16 when the parties appear in court with their completed pre-trial statements.

objected to the first ground and argued that the grounds raised were not specified in the affidavits. Chief Justice Sir Salamo also pointed out that the form relied upon in the application did not specify the grounds on which the argument would be based upon. The judge said the correct form would be form 44 of the Supreme Court rules. The Chief Justice therefore asked

Mr Haiara if he wished to amend the application or file a fresh application. Mr Haiara told the court that he would file a fresh application and requested the court to adjourn the matter to next week Thursday for the hearing of the fresh application. The Chief Justice agreed and made directions for the matter to be adjourned to next Thursday and also directed Mr Haiara to file a

fresh application for bail.

Mr Potape was sentenced to two years and six months in prison early this month by the National court over misappropriation charges. The court found that Mr Potape and other Joint District Planning and Budget Priorities Committee members in the Komo-Magarima district passed a resolution on November 20, 2010, and paid themselves K330,000 of

public funds as outstanding allowances. Of the K330,000 Mr Potape received K60,000 while the other members received K30,000 each. Mr Potape repaid the amount in full prior to his sentencing. He was initially given a five year sentence but the court deducted half of the sentence and ordered him to serve two years and six months in prison instead.

OFFICE OF THE REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES DEFERRAL OF NEW FEES

The Registrar of Companies wishes to advise all directors of existing companies and deregistered companies of the new changes on Annual Returns Fees which will be implemented this year. The implementation of the new fees has been deferred to 4TH APRIL 2015. This is to give opportunity to all company directors to ensure that all your outstanding returns are lodged. There will not be a further deferral after the 4th April 2015.

All existing Company directors are advised that the following new fee structures will become effective on the 4th April 2015.

1. ANNUAL RETURNS

(a) Exempted Companies (Companies that are not required to file Audited Financial Statements)

(b) Reporting Companies (Including all foreign companies)

2. LATE ANNUAL RETURNS

All company directors are advised to lodge all your outstanding Annual Returns before the 4th April 2015. The normal late fee of K150.00 will apply until 1st April 2015.

3. REINSTATEMENT OF DEREGISTERED COMPANIES

All directors and shareholders of deregistered Companies are advised that as of 4th April 2015 new fees will apply for reinstatement of defunct companies. The table below provides the old and the new fee structures.

Therefore, directors of deregistered companies who wish to reinstate their companies are advised to reinstate their defunct companies before the 4th April 2015. THANK YOU

PEPES MUST AIM UP

TEAM PNG PEPES players need to change their attitude and be committed to their training.

PNG players have a bad attitude, once they are selected and play for the country, they become “knowalls” and cannot be told.

I know that some of the players are injured, but they still make the team. How will the team win if we play injured players against international side? They can’t do sprints, and other netball drills. Where is our sports medical doctor and high performance manager? Can all these players be checked to tell the truth?

We must win the gold medal at the Paci fi c Games. Nothing less. There were three coaches who went to Singapore last year and what happened? Very bad performance. We want the best team for the Paci fi c Games.

Concerned Netballer.

POWER-LESS FOR DAYS

THE residents of Goroko Street and some parts of Henao Drive have been without power since last Saturday. Would PNG Power CEO and senior management team please urgently fi x the problem as we, the residents have been terribly suffering without power to our homes since last Saturday?

Unhappy Five-Mile resident.

LEAVE P’NYANG

A LETTER published recently by a Eugene Kambut, must be seriously t aken into account. P’nyang gas should not be used to supply power to Port Moresby. That deal has already been done and the money is t ied with it. So why is it that the Government and the developer are trying to use P’nyang gas for Moresby?

The Western Province LNG fi elds should be stand alone entities. The landowners and people of Western must stand for their rights.

Observer

Project fees can help schools

I AM looking for a Sinasina man namely James Keraga (Raka), has lived in Madang town for many years. He is from Koge village in Sinasina, Chimbu Province. If anyone knows him please tell him to call me on mobile phone: 72649666 or email: komam2245@gmail.com

Michael Koma

AS A READER and a concerned teaching parent, I wish to comment on the Secretary for Education’s instruction that appeared in the Post-Courier on Thursday, January 29, 2015 regarding the cancellation of project fees in Government permitted institutions right throughout the country.

The Secretary’s instruction is like an order dismantling the authorities of Board of Management and Board of Governors with their Provincial Education Boards (PEB) not to charge project fees even if it has been approved by the PEB. It is unreasonable for the Secretary to give such an instruction as he doesn’t know the financial burdens of each institution. I wonder if the Secretary knows the financial problems institutions

are facing. Does the Secretary know the deteriorating infrastructure that need extra funding for maintenance? Does the Secretary know additional funds are needed to build new teaching and learning facilities to cater for the influx of students’ enrolment due to the National Government free-education policy? Does the Secretary know more funds are needed to build better teachers houses to improve teachers living conditions? Does the Secretary know more funds are needed by the schools authorities to manage their institutions throughout the year? We do applauded the free-education policy but this is still not enough. Honestly speaking, the allocations of the Tuition Fee Free (subsidy) to schools are

insufficient when you consider better teaching and learning facilities. With the new curriculum to be implemented very soon, where will institutions get funding to manage them?

Many parents and citizens will agree that project fee is a supportive revenue for institutions to operate when the government TFF is delayed. Nothing is free in this world and already the impacts of this spoon-feeding system have some evidence speaking for themselves. With the late distribution of the TFF funding and the cancellation of the project fees, what does the Secretary expect?

Educationist Considerer.

WRITE TO US Text us on 208

No need to hire expats

Letter of the day

I WAS moved by an article that appeared last Friday titled “Hiring foreign teachers at expense of our own” in the other daily.

As a former national/secondary high school teacher in the old system and during the secondary school transition period, the issue of paying contract teachers three to four times that of a national teacher’s salary was one of those factors that forced me to leave the classroom.

The expatriates came with their impressive degrees, masters and doctors in philosophy to teach in our schools while a few of them have counterfeit or forged documents that have no value in the classroom. National teachers are selected on merits with the grading and certification system closely administered by the PNG Government through the Office of Higher Education, including the Department of Education.

Unlike our system, no one knows the quality of qualification obtained

in a foreign country and the stages of education one goes through.

Amid all I have mentioned, a number of expatriates lack subject specialty. Most of their lesson notes are cut-paste from handouts and old test or exam papers left behind by former teachers. As we all know, civilisation started in their country well before PNG so the master’s degree or the undergraduate degrees can be fraudulent, just like the counterfeit or fake products that end up in our shores. I was once head of science in one of the pioneer secondary schools in the highlands and assigned one expatriate teacher to teach Grade 12 science. This was after identifying his master’s degree and teaching experience in his home country. The expatriate later came arguing with me that he would continue teaching in the lower secondary, a grade he has been teaching for the last few decades ever since entering PNG. From evidences collected in schools throughout the country, national examination results continue to reveal that PNG teachers are still the best. Students

Text us on 208

taught by a PNG teacher score good grades than the Education Department’s costly expatriates. Especially in mathematics, physics, chemistry, economics and English. Despite the realities, the Education Department continues to recruit overseas teachers and keep them on a high salary.

I literally forced an expat out of the classroom after sighting that teacher’s net salary of K3500. This was for almost the same job I do, while I collect a lousy net pay of K549.

I am now working as a forklift operator with one of the drilling companies in PNG, earning a mere K45,000 per annum. This may be equivalent to a principal of a secondary school’s pay. The Government continues to ignore the struggles of many hard working teachers so it is about time we register an association (Secondary Science and Mathematics Teachers Association) through IPA and fight for better terms and conditions. You will shake the Education Department and the nation.

Ken Kende Kiripe Gulf

Wapenamanda district in capable hands

IN THE last two years, the two dailies (and Facebook) have been bombarded with letters questioning and criticising Rimbink Pato concerning delivery of developmental expectations.

Some were justified. Most, apparently, motivated by political discord.

Allow me a few lines to express my views on Wapenamanda district affairs. I am one among 71,797 constituents who call it home.

The critics may have hit so soon. The MP was slow off the blocks, but his blueprint for the district appears to be in motion now.

I want to mention a few projects the Wapenamanda District Development Authority, which Mr Pato

chairs, is rolling out. They are: Wapenamanda town road upgrade and sealing; the Tsak trunk road upgrade and sealing; replacement of arterial, yet vital bridges within Tsak and the lower and upper Lai areas, including the commissioning of the Tsak mini-hydro; St Paul’s high e-library; and the border police station are just some of the projects.

The important sectors (health, education and law and order) are being restored, slowly, but steadily.

I am sure the upgrade and sealing of Lower Lai and the Siikin Corridor trunk roads connecting the highway are next on his watch. Time is on his side.

MPs past did their bit. History will

CHANGE PROMO

Digicel has a good 1hour 40 minutes promotion for K5 flex or direct electronic top-up. However, I think it is not healthy and is also brain damaging for humans. By 11pm everyone is already in bed sleeping so it would be nice to start the promotion at 8pm or 9pm when people are still awake. Also, instead of paying K1.20 for 60 free SMS, why not revert to the K1 for 50 SMS promotion? It is convenient for the little people.

Disappointed customer

GIVE BETTER IDEA

It is interesting to note that the aggrieved Papuan leaders showing solidarity under these circumstances, are all blaming NCD Governor Powes Parkop for banning the buai The question is, what alternative ideas can they can give to Mr Parkop to maintain the city’s cleanliness?

These leaders are hypocrites. While other provinces are advancing, we are reversing and the excuse is that because buai sales are down, it has affected the province’s revenue. All these so-called leaders should shut up as their criticisms are uncalled for.

Rigo Melo

judge them. Mr Pato inherited the Wapenamanda we had. Two years on, it’s a district in progress. When the next election cycle kicks in, I believe Wapenamanda will be different. The district is genuinely transforming in Pato’s tenure. It sure is a team effort. And I admire the way our District Development Authority is restoring Wapenamanda in positioning it to become the place it ought to be and to promote the promise it always had. Wapenamanda has never been in more capable hands.

Robert Salmon-Minak NCD

The ban on plastic bags became effective on January 1, 2005. 10 years ago

DON’T BLAME PARKOP

Why are people calling for NCD Governor Powes Parkop to step down?

It’s not like he just sits in the office doing nothing and gets paid. That man is a visionary. He thinks and plans ahead. He had to take extreme measures, like banning betelnut, because people are behaving like animals.

The governor used different methods of awareness but to no avail. He even put up posters at traffic lights, urging commuters not to spit red betelnut out of vehicles. “Help keep our city clean,” the posters read. Did they listen? No. They defaced

the posters using red betelnut spittle. Disgusting! Do not blame him, blame yourselves. He shouldn’t step down, you should step out of this city... for good. Go somewhere else where there is no law so you can live like the animal you are.

NCD resident

ENB’S BAD RESULTS

I would like to express my disappointment as a concerned parent and citizen on the 2012 Grade eight results of Vunairima Primary School in East New Britain Province. The school topped the Gazelle district and came fifth in the province as shown in the grade results. The results of Grade 10 students who graduated last year, 2014 was very poor also. The majority of the students went home with no offers to continue onto Grade 11. Did parents or relatives of these students realise this? We expected a better result, but it was all a nightmare for the parents and students who missed out after the selections were made. The point is, the teacher who was teaching them was not always with them. He had been on and off class the whole year (2012), travelling overseas and within the country or doing personal businesses. wasting the students’ and parents’ time. The students were always left alone with no work to do. Please ENB education authority, do something about it and investigate why the school admin and board of management did nothing to bring this teacher into line. He did the same thing again last year when he was supposed to have taught Grade 7 . He had an absenteeism problem. This year, the teacher who is going to take the class in Grade 8 will have a lot of headaches. I am appealing again to the people in authority to look into the matter and weed out the bad weed.

Concerned parent

Police are supposed to be a disciplined Police are to be a force and not undisciplined. Inadequate force and not training coupled with poor living standards with poor standards contributed to these shortcomings. contributed to these

Catholic Bishops Conference general secretary Father Victor Roche on Catholic Conference secretary Father Victor Roche on police brutality brutality.

Ministry ‘not a cult movement’

AN Anglican Church Ministry which was branded a cult movement 15 years ago and disowned by the church has spoken of its purpose for Christians in Oro Province.

Puwo Gave Ministry International, with its inland ministry branch Humakioe Ministry chief of chiefs Fr Lucian Vevehupa, has revealed that the ministry was created for a purpose by a divine plan.

The founder of the ministry was late retired first indigenous bishop of the Anglican Church in PNG and Melanesian states in the Pacific and Oceania region, late Sir George Ambo.

Fr Vevehupa said the Puwo Gave Ministry was created as the spiritual ministry arm of the Anglican Church of PNG with super divine intervention and not a separate church as claimed by Anglican Christians and the church.

It was a locally created spiritual development arm such

as the exiting St Franciscan Brothers, Melanesian Brotherhood and Holy Sisters.

It was only misunderstanding which created differences with the main Anglican Church, Fr Vevehupa said. He was supported by his ministry executives at Taho Bende Ministry Centre in Jajau village, Higaturu LLG area in the Sohe District.

The ministry derived its name from the Bible in the Book of John chapter 1, verse 39 “come and see” invitation in Oro language – Puwo Gave in the Ewage dialect in Ijivitari District and Humakioe – in Central Kaiva language in the Sohe District.

Fr Vevehupa said Jesus gave an invitation in the Bible so the ministry gave the same invitation to the Anglican Church to worship in Oro language and celebrate using Oro tradition and customs in feasting and celebrating.

MINI ARTIFACT SALE

Aussies join effort to contain TB

THE fight to stop Tuberculosis in Western Province continues with a range of new programs currently being initiated by neighbouring Australia.

Four specially crafted boats are heading from Australia’s northeast coast to Papua New Guinea as part of a program to help stop the spread of tuberculosis in the country, Radio Australia has reported.

The boats will be used to carry stretchers, medical supplies, staff and patients from outer islands in PNG’s Western Province to the mainland.

The boats are part of a range of programs set up by the Australian Government, local organisations and the Cairns Reef and Rainforest Research Centre to tackle the growing problem of the multi-drug resistant TB.

Cairns Reef and Rainforest Research Centre managing director Sheriden Morris said a lack of adequate services in PNG made it hard for locals to respond to the disease.

“When you see all the infrastructure declining, when you see the community services declining, you know something has to be done,” she told Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat. As part of the program, 40 community rangers were selected by village elders in the country’s Western Province for training.

Ms Morris said the program aimed

to build the ability of locals to deal with the disease.

“It’s to build resilience in those communities,” she said.

“We utilise the skills that are in the region, utilise the expertise in the region, to actually look at how we can improve things.

“Part of the problem we’ve had is that, a lot of the time, the aid and support that comes to these regions really lacks the local experience and local knowledge.”

Ms Morris said even local health services were finding it difficult to control the disease.

She said on a recent visit this month, nurses at the Daru hospital went on strike because they said they could no longer cope with the TB levels.

“When the hospital can’t cope anymore, when the communities can’t cope, we need to be looking at ways to be building those communities back up so they can manage.”

She said it was difficult to see an area so close to Australia struggling to cope with TB.

“There is not one family I work with now across all the villages that isn’t impacted by TB and multidrug resistant TB,” she said.

“There are also a lot of other diseases. There’s a lot of leprosy, there’s been a big outbreak of cholera previously. “This is an area that is really suffering and it’s so close – it is our border.”

MORE than 144 passengers descended on Port Moresby and visited the Port Moresby Nature Park, National Museum and Parliament House recently. At the Nature Park they were treated to a craft market as seen here.

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Police prevent tribal clash

BY ANDREW ALPHONSE

QUICK action last Saturday morning by Tari-based police mobile squad 09 unit prevented a potentially disastrous tribal fight at Piangoanda village in Huli LLG of Komo Margarima district.

Tari MS09 unit led by squad commander Inspector Spencer Gelo and Huli LLG president Eric Yawas, visited the two groups and warned them from taking part in the fight, adding that with fighting zone now declared in Tari and parts of the Hela province, police with the assistance of PNG Defence Force soldiers currently on the ground in Tari would arrest and charge anyone involved in the fight.

Police said the fight started between two factions of the Poroli clan that live in Piangonda. Police said the incident happened last Friday when one group of

Massive compo ends protracted conflict

MORE than 400 pigs whose collective price went beyond half a million kina plus cash was given as compensation to three neighboring tribes who supported the fight between Lai and Kalako tribe in Laiagam Enga province where 44 lives have been lost.

The fight resulted from a National Court decision to release a state owned land to a local business group call Mamale back in 2010.

The court order was breached by the Kalako clan which claimed that the land was traditional, which eventuated in a tribal fight between the Lai and Kalako tribes.

Chairman of Mamale Business Group Akum Kapone expressed his concern that the deaths would not have happened if the Kalako tribe conformed to the National Court order.

Private lawyer Laias Kandi said this compensation payment is the beginning of the process to bring lasting peace in the valley and those

displaced people from the affected area must return and live a normal life again.

The Laiagam peace and order committee has worked tirelessly to bring peace and order, which made it possible to settle a compensation for those who assisted the Lai tribe.

The four day compensation was witnessed by Joint Security Force on the call out operation in Porgera and local police in Laiagam station.

Police commander Chief Superintendent Norman Kambo said the fighting will not bring development to Laiagam and wants those people who have firearms must surrender them.

He said Enga Province is blessed and the people should change for the better.

He will visit Laiagam in the next two months for a special operation to clear out firearms and wants the people’s cooperation.

Warriors die in tribal war

BY MICHAEL KOMA

THREE men died in a fierce tribal clash in Eastern Highlands’ Henganofi district at the weekend.

Provincial police chief John Kale confirmed the killings yesterday, saying that a police mobile squad unit had been deployed in the area to contain the violence.

He said the fatalities were from the same tribe.

Many houses and food gardens were also destroyed in the fight.

Mr Kale said police were trying to find out the cause of the fight.

He said there was no disturbance to the flow of traffic on the Highlands Highway due to heavy police presence in the area.

Henganofi MP and Police Minister Robert Atiyafa is reportedly travelled into the volatile area to call on his people to lay down arms and live in peace and harmony.

Henganofi district is sandwiched between Kainantu and the provincial capital, Goroka.

The notorious Kompri and Barola areas along the Highlands Highway are also located in the Henganofi district.

At a glance

POTENTIAL FIGHT: The potential tribal clash was avoided when LLG leaders and police moved swiftly to urge the people not to take up arms

boys were fishing at the Alua River.

Another group from the other side of the river attacked and chased them for trespassing.

Police said two boys were hurt in the melee and had to be transported to Tari hospital where they were treated by international medical organisation, the Medicines Sans Frontiers (MSF) or Doctors with Borders.

Police said relatives of the injured boys retaliated and burned down some houses and destroyed properties the same day while further tribal clash was looming.

Mr Yawas alerted police

in Tari for their immediate intervention.

Mr Yawas, Insp Gelo and the MS09 units travelled to Piangonda and Kela villages and talked to the two groups to stop fighting or they would face the full force of law.

Mr Yawas, who is also the chairman of law and order in the Hela provincial assembly, told the groups that the provincial government has allocated another K2 million for the joint PNGDF soldiers and police security operations in Hela for the next three months.

Mr Yawas told them that the provincial government is serious about addressing tribal fights and all lawlessness activities so the people need to change their attitudes and live in peace and harmony.

Insp Gelo urged the people to do away with tribal conflicts and use the available government agencies to resolve conflicts.

ERIC Yawas (left), Hulia LLG president and chairman of law and order in the Hela Provincial Assembly addresses the people at Kela village last Saturday to stop tribal fi ght

MRA comes through for women’s group

THE National Government’s Women In Mining (WIM) initiative has made its mark with the women landowners of Hidden Valley mine in Morobe Province.

The Nauti Women Group which is made up of women from Nauti, Minava and Akikanda villages received a new Isuzu PMV truck through WIM custodian, the Mineral Resources Authority on January 23.

The vehicle was purchased with grants made available through the small grants project (SPG).

The SGP is a government initiative funded by the World Bank under its mining sector institutional strengthening assistance project 2.

The project is aimed at assisting associations start up small enterprises or further develop existing ones with the ultimate aim of enabling the women sustain their livelihoods beyond life of mines operating in their areas.

Teachers protest likely

A PROTEST by disadvantaged teachers in Morobe Province for the non-payment of their outstanding duty allowances for 2014 seems imminent.

The teachers from five remote schools in the province were promised K4000 duty allowances by last Friday.

However, up till now, no payments have been made.

The teachers issued a warning yesterday to the Morobe provincial education office to act immediately or a protest will be staged by end of this week.

The Morobe Provincial program adviser for education Keith Jiram last week assured the teachers that the payments will be made by end of January.

He said the delay was the result of outstanding bills owed to Digicel PNG Limited for the usage of their database service, which he said has been sorted out and urged the teachers to resume duties. But it seems that was all talk.

District announces subsidy scheme

TERTIARY students from YangoruSaussia district in East Sepik Province will have their school fees subsidised with a K1000 assistance from the Yangoru-Saussia Joint District Budget Priority Committee (JDBPC).

Local MP and Minister for Trade Commerce and Industry, Richard Maru announced this yesterday.

“The Yangoru-Saussia Joint District Budget Priority Committee met last week and has agreed for a K1000 school fee subsidy per student to be paid by the district for every tertiary student whose parents are currently based in the District or reside in the village”, said Mr Maru.

Following the announcement of this new school fee subsidy last week, forms were distributed to LLG presidents to distribute to councillors and parents of students who are eligible to apply for this subsidy.

Mr Maru said the new tertiary school fee subsidy scheme will target ordinary villagers or parents who live and reside in the district and the subsidy will be paid directly to the institutions.

He said eligible parents who have already paid fees in full will be reimbursed their K1000 in full.

“As responsible leaders we fully appreciate the financial hardships our ordinary village based parents are facing and hence the need for the district to intervene with some assistance,” said Mr Maru.

He said this is also in line with

At a glance

HELP: Yangoru-Saussia MP Richard Maru has announced a K1000 subsidy fee per tertiary student from the district.

ELIGIBLE: Those whose parents are currently based in the district or reside in the villages.

INCENTIVE: The district also hopes that this may encourage more quality public servants to return to the districts.

HENCE: The subsidy will also cover for those students whose parents are serving the public service in the district.

the district’s stated policy of education being it’s most important policy priority.

Mr Maru further announced that students whose parents are serving the public service in the district are also qualified for this subsidy.

The JDBPC agreed to this assistance as an incentive to also attract high quality public servants to go and work in the district.

“We have planned for 1000 students to benefit from the scheme in 2015 and have budgeted K1 million in 2015 to fund the subsidy scheme,” Mr Maru said.

“I want to make it clear though that we are not paying all the fees but only assisting with a K1000 subsidy fee per student.”

He said parents will still have to pay the balance of the fees themselves while the district will top up with the subsidy assistance scheme.

MR Topo (right) and Mr Guambelek (centre) hand over the PMV truck keys to Nauti chairwoman Elisabeth Kito.

LLG get K2.6m to extend power

THE people of Lemakot and the greater Tikana local level government area in Kavieng, New Ireland Province, have received a K2.6 million funding for a 20km extension of electricity lines along the Buluminsky Highway.

MP for Kavieng and Public Enterprises and State Investments Minister, Ben Micah, last Friday signed a tri-party agreement between PNG Power Limited, Kavieng District Authority and G-Man Electrical Limited to kick start the project.

Mr Micah announced a funding facility of K2.6 million for the project with immediate mobilisation of K250,000 to G-Man Electrical Ltd, the company engaged for this project.

The Minister said he is pushing for Papua New Guinea to be serviced with electricity and communication as well as other important services and it was only fitting that he starts in his

Gazelle keen to develop hydro power

BY PATRICK MINANA

GAZELLE District in East New Britain Province has the potential to own and operate a power supply if a feasibility study soon to be carried out, confirms that Toriu River can host the province’s second hydro power plant.

In a meeting with PNG Power officials, Gazelle MP and Minister for Higher Education, Research Science and Technology, Malakai Tabar, was urged to consider his district owning the project and selling electricity to users as PNG Power Limited has opened up the market for power generation.

Mr Tabar was advised to consider his district owning the power supply as an independent power producer.

He has requested for a feasibility study on the Toriu river to

determine whether it is suitable to host a hydro power project for the province.

Mr Tabar said electricity consumption in East New Britain Province has tripled over the years and yet the source has remained the same. This was proving to be a major problem.

Toriu river originates in the mountains of the inland Baining LLG area as it empties into the sea at Lassul Baining LLG area some 50 kilometres away.

Mr Tabar’s move to establish the hydro plant at Toriu is part of Gazelle’s five year development plan.

During the meeting, the PNG Power PPL officials urged the Minister to seriously consider owning the project instead of just initiating it.

Kavieng town ‘stagnant’

KAVIENG town mayor Stanley Mansini yesterday declared that Kavieng township is still the remnant of the colonial era town.

He said there are no modern infrastructures and modern municipal services in place since the country’s independence to categorise Kavieng as an urban centre.

Water supply, sewerage systems, storm drainages and power lines are very old remnants of colonial era, he said.

“The Kavieng Urban local level government plans to stimulate modern infrastructures but it will not materialise because the Urban LLG DSIP grants have been

delayed. New Ireland Provincial Physical Planning Board and the Building Board are delivering low quality services here,” he said.

“The town is still hosting condemned colonial houses that are way below the standards of a modern town in any global perspective.”

He said Kavieng Urban LLG is experiencing a decline in its service delivery to the people also because of the cut in the LLGDSIP of K500,000 down to K100,000.

He siad Kavieng town is developing at a snail pace because the government is not investing in public infrastructure projects.

At a glance

CONTRACTOR: G-Man Electrical Limited has been given K250,000 fort he project.

EXTENSION: 20km extension of power along Buluminsky Highway.

electorate.

“I will initiate more electricity projects in the electorate. Power is the key catalyst for development, and the rural electrification program would extend all the way to Bol at the border of Kavieng and Namatanai district.

As for communication services, I am pleased we have covered almost all of Kavieng,” Mr Micah said.

G-Man Electrical Ltd managing director, William Levis, thanked the Kavieng MP and his District Development Authority for pro-

moting local business and investing in key infrastructures.

Mr Levis said the rural electrification project would benefit households, schools and aid posts from Livitua to Fangalawa junction, as well as promote industry and development in the Tikana LLG area.

Meanwhile, Mr Micah is travelling the country to discuss the Proclamation of Emergency in electricity services.

A Ministry spokesman said Mr Micah intends to discuss the need for the exercise and the positive outcomes so far.

Mr Micah is accompanied by the SOE controller Captain Tom Ur and PNG Power officials to meet with PNG Power workers, the business community, government officials, provincial and national government instruments in the provinces. He will be in Lae and Madang today.

CEO and acting provincial administrator Moses Makis presents the dummy cheque to G-Man Electrical managing director William Levis, witnessed by Mr Micah and PNG Power officers.

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Dangtanai celebrate opening of new house

THE lower Aropa area in the South Nasioi area of Central Bougainville will soon benefit from the relocation of the Dokotonau Primary School, formerly located in the Rumba area.

Last Thursday, a ground breaking ceremony set a new phase for the relocation and development of the school that will benefit the people in that area.

The project that will be funded by Australia through its education program and will see two double classrooms, a teacher’s house and a school administration and ablution blocks being built in the new location.

Facilities at the current school location willl continue to be used until buildings and necessary infrastructures are set in the new location.

Australia relocates school New shop targets youths

A NEW shop specializing in the sales of heavy rock and heavy metal music clothes has opened in Buka in the hope of cashing in on the people’s fanatical following of these music genres.

The shop, Metal Empire, opened just before the new year and is selling assorted printed t-shirts printing all sorts of heavy metal and heavy rock bands around the world.

The shop is owned by Clarence and Albertha Sukaliana. They said the idea of setting up the shop was to try something different in Bougainville apart from other businesses that mainly sell food items and clothing that are of the same features.

They said the idea of venturing into this business came about when they saw that Bougainville youths in the past were into metal dressing and music so they decided to cash in.

Both said it is also to bring in services and provide employment opportunities and affordable prices with quality to help rebuild Bougainville.

“Some more other items as videos, magazines, music CDs, long sleeved shirts, leather and jean jackets, wrist spikes, chains, boots and other related products are due to arrive and in two weeks’ time we will also be selling other items.”

B’ville public urged to obey traffic rules

TRAFFIC is still a major problem in Bougainville, especially on the mainland,” Arawa police station commander Seargent Herman Birengka says.

“But we want the public to start following the traffics rules because our police officers could not be everywhere in all times. It is for the safety of the public and the drivers as well,” Sgt Birengka said.

He said safety is the first and foremost that vehicle owners and drivers must consider before driving out or while driving on the road.

“Accidents do not tell when they occur, they just come withinthe blinki of and eye when you are not ready,” he

At a glance

CONCERN: Traffic is still a major problem in Bougainville, especially the mainland.

ARAWA POLICE STATION COMMANDER: Sgt Herman Birengka has called for the public to start following the traffics rules because our police officers could not be everywhere in all times. It is for the safety of the public and the drivers as well.

EXERCISE: The police have been doing some traffic exercises and more will take place this year.

said. He strongly urged the public to respect and follow the simple traffics rules like no over loading or speeding in public areas so that no lives are lost unnecessarily this year.

He said the public’s cooperation is needed so that police can have more time to focus on other law and order

issues. Recently a Motor Vehicle Insurance Limited (MVIL) branch was set up in Arawa and people should also make use of it to register and insure their vehicles so that it will make it much easier to monitor traffic in the area, especially Central and South Bougainville, he said.

BY ISHMAEL

MANY times we do not see how much we have been blessed compared to other countries in the world, says Pastor Steven Joash.

Speaking at the opening of a family house in Dangtanai area of the Kokoda council of elders in Kieta, pastor Joash said most times we take things for granted without appreciating them.

“Most of these things we take for granted,” he said.

Last Sunday, Pineinau village in Dangtanai area came to life with the celebration of a new house opening.

Relatives flocked in from nearby villages to celebrate and see the new house, and also brought gifts for the new house.

Opening of new houses are common in most parts of Bougainville and it is an occasion that most people do not want to miss.

Speaking at the gathering, pastor Joash of Bana District in South Bougainville reminded the people that God had blessed Bougainville in many ways and one example is the types of permanent houses that are built in the villages.

He said some countries in the world build their house from mud, grass and so forth but Bougainville is really blessed with trees and other resources that the people use to generate money to buy proper materials for building.

“We must acknowledge Him (God) and must not take things for granted,” he reiterated,” he said.

Sgt Birengka urged the public to obey and follow the traffic rules for the good of the general public and also the travelling public.

In the meantime, Sgt Birengka said the police have been doing some traffic exercises and more will take place this year to ensure safety on the roads.

“We must use our resources wisely and do not waste them for unworthy things. Build such houses for your family to live comfortably in the land that he (God) has put us.”

Pastor Steven said he views a house as a building and a home being made up by the family which occupies the house.

He also said that many times we build houses but we do not make a proper home.

LOs open up WWII crash site for tourists

THE famed YAMAMOTO crash site in Buin, South Bougainville has recently opened for tourists following a 10-year closure.

Japanese admiral Yamamoto, known for his genius behind the Pearl Harbour attack in Hawaii during World War II, was attacked when flying over Bougainville by United States Air Force fighters and his plane crashed in the jungles of

Kokopo village in the Makis constituency of Buin. The admiral died in the 1943 crash.

According to the chairman of local landowners, Raphael Bakiri, the Yamamoto crash site was one of the hottest tourism spots in the Buin District before the Bougainville crisis.

He said the place takes in many tourists every day but the villagers

now want to revive that and they are happy for visitors to visit the site.

“The place was very restricted because it is in the border of two clans which conflict over that but after the recent reconciliation, they are very happy to make revenue out of it on an equal basis,” Mr Bakiri said.

According to Steven Tamiung

of Bougainville Experience Tours (BET), the first Japanese tourists will visit the Yamamoto site in April. The tourists are part of the Nichibu Research Group, which is already booked with BET to do a four day tour and Yamamoto site is their priority site, Mr Tamiung said.

He said more requests were still coming in for visits to the site.

The Chinese city of Chongqing has the world’s first dedicated pavement for mobile phone users.

SOUTH Nasioi MP John Ken planting a coconut tree during the group breaking ceremony while other guests, landowners and locals witness the event. Picture: ISHMAEL PALIPAL

PALIPAL

Sgt Herman Birengka

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PNG gas project boosts ExxonMobil earnings

Market Snapshot

BY PATRICK.T.WUNDAI

EXXONMOBIL Corporation

(ExxonMobil), the holding company of ExxonMobil PNG Limited (EMPNGL) yesterday announced an estimated full-year 2014 earnings of $32.5 billion (K85.19 billion) compared with $32.6 billion (K85.45 billion) a year earlier, reflecting the strength of its integrated business model in a lower price environment.

Though the company reported a decline in revenue, oil production and field decline, ExxonMobil’s fourth quarter result was offset by higher volumes from Papua New Guinea and work programs. In a statement released through ExxonMobil’s website, total revenues and other income for the quarter dropped to $87.28 billion (K228.78 billion) from $110.86 billion (K290.58 billion) in the year ago quarter.

Fourth quarter natural gas production was 11.2 billion cubic feet per day, down 653 million cubic feet per day from 2013.

At a glance

2014 EARNINGS: ExxonMobil announced yesterday an estimated full-year 2014 earnings of $32.5 billion (K85.19 billion) compared with $32.6 billion (K85.45 billion) a year earlier.

Q4 RESULTS: Was offset by higher volumes from Papua New Guinea and work programs.

Q4 NATURAL GAS PRODUCTION: Was 11.2 billion cubic feet per day, down 653 million cubic feet per day from 2013.

PETER GRAHAM: Former managing director for EMPNGL; the man who was at the helm of delivering the country’s single largest LNG project has retired after seeing through the project’s successful completion and delivery.

Field decline, lower demand, and reduced entitlement volumes were partly offset by higher volumes from US$19 (K50 billion) PNG LNG Project and work programs.

“ExxonMobil’s results illustrate the value of our proven business model that integrates upstream, downstream, and chemical businesses,” said Rex W. Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer.

“Our balanced portfolio uniquely positions ExxonMobil to deliver superior results throughout the com-

modity price cycle.

“ExxonMobil completed a record eight major upstream projects during the year, including the Papua New Guinea liquefied natural gas project, and achieved its full-year plan to produce 4 million oil-equivalent barrels per day,” he added.

Fourth quarter earnings were $6.6 billion (K17.30 billion), or $1.56 (K4.08) per diluted share, down from $8.4 billion (K22.01 billion) in the year-ago quarter.

Lower commodity prices in the Upstream and higher planned

$A slides on rate cut

SYDNEY: The Australian dollar has fallen well below 77 US cents after the Reserve Bank cut its cash rate for the first time in 18 months.

maintenance costs in the Downstream were partially offset by improved Chemical margins.

During 2014, the corporation distributed $23.6 billion (K85.45 billion) to shareholders in the form of dividends and share purchases to reduce shares outstanding, resulting in a total shareholder distribution yield of 5.4%.

The results and report was confirmed by EMPNGL in Port Moresby.

Meanwhile, Peter Graham, now a former managing director for EMPNGL; the man who was at the helm of delivering the country’s single largest LNG project has retired from the job after seeing through the project’s successful completion and delivery.

He has been replaced by new managing director Andrew Barry.

No further details about Mr Graham’s retirement was made available but a source from EMPNGL when asked for comment said; “He has retired (Peter Graham). Andrew took over as of 2 February (Monday)”.

At 1700 AEDT on Tuesday, the local unit was trading at 76.63 US cents, down from 77.81 cents on Monday. After the RBA’s decision to cut its interest rate to a new record low of 2.25 per cent, the currency plunged almost two US cents to 76.51, its weakest level since May 2009.

The RBA said it decided to cut due to the prospect of sluggish economic growth and a higher unemployment rate than earlier expected.

“The announcement gave Australian dollar bears all the incentive they needed to resume mauling the currency,” Forex.com research analyst Chris Tedder said.

“The RBA continues to believe the Australian dollar is overvalued and should lower alongside continuing weakness in commodity prices.

“While the bank elected to cut the official cash rate and jawboned the Aussie some more, the whole statement by Stevens’ wasn’t overly dovish and, disappointingly, doesn’t provide the market with much guidance on what the board is planning to do at upcoming meetings.”

For most of 2014 it looked as though the next move for the cash rate would be a hike, as reinforced by governor Glenn Stevens’ repeated statements about “a period of stability in interest rates”.

But some economists began altering their forecasts in December, with economic growth slowing to its weakest pace in three and a half years.

At 1700 AEDT, the Australian dollar was at 89.65 Japanese yen, down from Monday’s close of 91.59 yen after hitting a one-year low, and at 67.63 euro cents, down from 68.82 euro cents. Meanwhile, bond futures prices have shot to new record highs after the Reserve Bank cut the cash rate.

UBS interest rate strategist Andrew Lilley said the futures markets is pricing in another rate cut before the end of the year, the reason for such a sharp movement in bond prices.

MAP of PNG LNG Project overview.

Women receive new truck

THE National Government’s Women In Mining (WIM) initiative has made its mark with women landowners of Hidden Valley mine in Morobe Province.

Nauti Women Group, made up of women from Nauti, Minava and Akikanda villages received a new Isuzu truck through WIM custodian, the Mineral Resources Authority (MRA) late last month.

The vehicle was purchased with grants made available through the Small Grants Project (SGP).

The SGP is a government initiative funded by the World Bank under its Mining Sector Institutional Strengthening Assistance Project 2.

The project is aimed at assisting associations start up small enterprises or further develop existing ones with the ultimate aim of enabling the women sustain their livelihoods beyond life of mines operating in their areas.

MRA’s Gender coordinator Pentika Mambu, Project coordinator James Topo, and Bulolo District Administrator,

Tae Guambelek, officiated at the ceremony in Bulolo.

Ms Mambu said the government was committed to working with women in mine areas through the SGP.

She urged the Nauti women to capitalise on opportunities such as SGP as it was for them and their families’ future.

She also challenged the women to ensure that required operational and financial reports were produced within the next 18 months as MRA would be monitoring the progress of the project.

Morobe Mining’s Gender coordinator, Grace Bini added that Morobe Mining, as the facilitating partner, assisted the women, as well as landowner women from Kwembu and Winima by preparing grant applications to secure their desired projects under MRA’s WIM Small Grants Program.

“All three applications were successful. As a first-of-itskind assistance to Hidden Valley’s landowner women, it’s an exciting and momentous time for them,” Ms Bini said.

Westpac expands banking in Vanimo

WESTPAC customers in the idyllic town of Vanimo in the Sandaun Province can now conduct their banking with greater ease thanks to the installation of a new Westpac Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) outside a local branch.

The new ATM facility is located outside the new Vanimo Supermarket. The supermarket also contains a Westpac branch, allowing customers to apply for personal loans or cards and conduct a range of banking transactions.

Vanimo is the capital of Sandaun Province and is located on a peninsula close to the border with Indonesia. According to Westpac PNG’s head of Retail Banking, Adam Downie, the ATM is a bonus for residential customers as well as visiting customers passing through the busy town. “Customers can now conveniently withdraw cash at the ATM and shop at their ease in the supermarket or cross the road to buy goods at the Vanimo market,” said Mr Downie.

The agreement was signed and launched in Nauti Village in December 2014.

Nauti Women Group chairlady Elisabeth Kito said the women were happy to have been recognised by the government. “We are prepared to work together to face the challenges ahead of us,” Mrs Kito said.

Morobe Mining will work closely with the Nauti Women’s Group to prepare reports to MRA and provide basic project supervisory roles during the project period.

“Westpac is proud to be expanding the convenient banking services we provide in Vanimo. We have the second largest ATM fleet in the country and our Vanimo ATM is just one in a number we have rolled out in regional PNG recently, with more to come. ATMs complement our very successful Mobile Banking platform, In-stores and branch network to bring convenience and flexibility to our customers, wherever they are.”

Nautilus pre-pays charterer’s guarantee fee

NAUTILUS Minerals Inc, (Nautilus), has announced that it has pre-paid US$10M (K26.21 million) of the US$18M (K47.18 million) charterer’s guarantee that was to be provided to Marine Assets Corporation (MAC) on the commencement of the charter of the vessel, which is to be first deployed for use at the company’s Solwara 1 Project.

Nautilus said yesterday that under the terms of the Company’s vessel charter agreement with MAC, the company agreed to pay MAC a US$10M deposit after the contract for the construction of the vessel between MAC and Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding Ltd (Shipbuilding Contract) became effective by the payment of the first installment in late November 2014.

In December 2014, it was discovered that the company and MAC had been victims of a cyber attack by an unknown third party and as a result, the company paid the Deposit to a bank account which it believed to be MAC’s, but which MAC has advised was not its account.

The matter was promptly referred to the police authorities in the relevant jurisdictions and an investigation is underway.

The company has also engaged a cyber security firm to ensure the ongoing security and MAC’s networks and to investigate the source of the cyber attack. MAC and the company are cooperating with each other and

the authorities to facilitate the timely resolution of the investigations.

In the circumstances, the company has agreed to pre-pay US$10M of the charterer’s guarantee on the basis that: The remaining US$8M of the charterer’s guarantee will be

provided to MAC by the company on the commencement of the charter of the vessel; and The parties have agreed to determine how to proceed in relation to the Deposit following the conclusion of the investigations, which may take some months.

In the meantime, the construction of the vessel continues in accordance with the terms of the Shipbuilding Contract and the company continues to progress all aspects of the Project, so that it can achieve its goal of making seafloor mining a reality by early 2018.

MR TOPO (right) and Mr Guambelek haindig over the truck’s key to Mrs Kito.

HOW it looks like underwater when underwater mine begins. All step by step processes are said to be progressing before the worlds first ever deep sea mining commences in the water of Bismarck Sea between New Ireland and New Britain Provinces. Picture courtesy of Nautilus

Oil prices rebound on signs of output cuts

THE price of oil rallied on Monday as investors speculated that the falling cost of crude may have ended.

Brent crude was up 1.3% at $53.65 a barrel, having reached $55, while US oil rose 1.7% to $48.52.

It followed the release of data showing that US demand for leasing oil rigs was slowing, suggesting that producers might be preparing to cut output.

Meanwhile, US giant ExxonMobil reported a 21% fall in quarterly earnings on lower oil and gas production.

On Friday, data showed that more than 90 US oil rigs were idled, the largest number to be wound down in a single day since the mid-1980s.

“There were a lot of people on the sidelines waiting for an opportunity to buy,” said Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodity analyst at SEB.

Monday’s price rise extended the gains made last week, and boosted oil and gas share prices.

Tullow Oil rose almost 7%, while BG Group climbed 5%.

Since last summer, the prices of Brent and UK West Texas Intermediate Crude have fallen from above $100 a barrel. - BBC

EU warns Pacific tuna industries

SOLOMON Islands, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu are facing a European Union (EU) tuna import ban if they do not take action on illegal fishing. The three Pacific nations have received yellow cards from the EU for non-compliance with its laws designed to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries

Agency director-general James Movick last week told the ABC’s Pacific Beat program that in the case of Solomons Islands, virtually all their fisheries exports were going to Europe.

He said it was essential Pacific fisheries worked with the agency to meet all aspects of EU fishing regulations as a ban would be catastrophic for the region’s tuna industry.

“It would be virtually impossible to develop alternative markets within the six-month period, plus there would be a reputational issue if you’re banned in one market then certainly the level of scrutiny in another market would presumed to be higher,” he said.

Sol Tuna managing director and Pacific Islands Tuna Industry Association chairman Adrian Wickham said the industry in Solomon Islands was taking the European Union’s warning seriously.

He said tuna industry representatives in the Solomons met with the fisheries minister last week and were

EUROPEAN UNION (EU): The European Union is a politico-economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe.

WARNING: To Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu to comply with its laws designed to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the region.

assured the government was taking all the necessary steps to avoid a yellow card.

Mr Wickham said the government was planning to pass a bill to ensure better regulation of the nation’s fisheries industry.

“It is all about process and procedures and reporting systems and one of the most important instruments that has to be put in place is the new fisheries act,” he said.

“We are assured by government at the prime minister’s level even, that the new fisheries bill will be tabled in parliament at the next sitting.”

Mr Wickam said he believed by working with the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency, Solomon Islands would be able to avert an EU ban on the nation’s tuna.

He said the Solomons had provided the EU with an action plan. - ABC

Quick news

SUPPLIES ARRIVE

STORE shelves in American Samoa should be restocked soon following the arrival in port of another freighter carrying food imports from the United States. The Cape Avatele arrived in port this morning, bringing relief after delays in import arrivals caused by a slowdown at US west coast ports.

UNHAPPY CLIENTS

SOME Westpac Cook Islands customers say they are considering cancelling their accounts, following last week’s announcement that the bank’s Cook Islands operations will be sold to Bank of South Pacific Limited. Westpac Banking Corp said on Thursday it had agreed to sell its banking operations in five Pacific Island nations to the Bank of South Pacific Ltd (BSP) for AUD$125 million (US$98 million) to concentrate on its largest markets in the region –Fiji and Papua New Guinea.

SPTO REVIEW OUT

THE South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) has released the quarterly tourism review for the third quarter of 2014. The report presents a review of the performance of the tourism industry PICs in the third quarter of 2014 and the year ending September 2014, with comparative data for the same periods of the previous year in the South Pacific region as a whole, as well as in individual member countries.

US GIANT ExxonMobil reported a 21% fall in quarterly earnings on lower oil and gas production. - BBC

The Orders of Papua New Guinea

NOMINATIONS FOR AWARDS IN THE 2015 QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY AND INDEPENDENCE DAY ANNIVERSARY HONOURS

PAPUA NEW GUINEA HONOURS AND AWARDS NOMINATION FORM

Gabadi rice project rate outstanding progresses

THE Gabadi Super Hybrid Rice Pilot Project funded by the National Development Bank at Gabadi Village in Kairuku, Central Province is well underway and progressing at an impressive rate.

The project is the initiative of local landowners and joint venture partner Gabadi Agriculture Limited (GAL); a local company that specializes in project management, particularly in the agro industry.

The National Development Bank has invested almost K2.6 million in the company which was used as start up capital and so far NDB is pleased with the report provided and has been given the opportunity to inspect the project.

“NDB is happy to be a part of this high impact project which is the first of its kind in the country for the local people and we will continue to support this project and similar rice projects in the country under a nucleus project management structure.” NDB Managing Director, Moses Liu said. “We are thankful to the Philippines Ambassador to PNG His Excellency Dr. Bien Tejano for his support in providing technical assistance for the hybrid rice farming,” Mr. Liu added. In November last year, approximately 10 hectares of land was used to carry out an experiment to see the nutritional condition of the soil and to test the following trials that include the strike rate of rice as it is seen as 98% and water irrigation; the effects of water on the growth rate to name a few but most importantly to see if Papua New Guinea’s conditions were in fact viable to growing hybrid rice.

A recent visit to the experiment site showed the rice grains coming out of its tilers at an impressive rate without the use of chemicals and fer-

tilizers which proves that Papua New Guinea may be the best place to grow rice organically. Super Hybrid Rice

was impressed with the rate in which the rice was growing. “Since we already have clear proof or indication that this hybrid rice will be doing well under the PNG conditions, and with the availability of land, PNG can produce more than enough rice to feed the whole country and the rest of the world and this is a good accomplishment for PNG,” Dr. Frisco said.

He added that they were looking forward to the expansion of the area to be planted with this hybrid rice variety and were already preparing for the expansion of their seed production so that they can provide Gabadi Agriculture Limited with enough hybrid rice seed at the right time so that they can produce the highest possible yield of hybrid in PNG.

The

Scientist from SL Agritech Corporation of the Philippines Dr. Frisco Malabanan who visited the site

next phase of this pilot project will be the roll out of the rice production.

RICE grains coming out from the tilers at the Gabadi.

SUPER Hybrid rice grains coming out from the tilers at the Gabadi.

SUPER Hybrid Rice Scientist, Dr Frisco Malabanan inspecting the rice plant as the Philippines Ambassador to PNG his Excellency Dr Bien Tejano looks on.

Tunstall appoints new manager

NAMBAWAN Super has announced the appointment of Ms Maharlika San ValentinSantos as Manager Nambawan Savings & Loan Society.

Ms Valentin is originally from the Philippines.

She has a Bachelors Degree in Law from the Philippine Law School and a Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce Major in Accounting from the Far Eastern University

in Manila, Philippines. She is a Banker and Accountant by profession. She has worked in various Commercial Banks including the Top 1 Universal Bank in the Philippines, Banco De Oro Universal Bank (BDO). She also had some legal experience having worked as a Paralegal and Legal Researcher with SENCOR and a Local Legislative Officer with Manila City Hall in the Philippines.

Before joining Nambawan Super, Maharlika was the Company Secretary and Personal Assistant to the Executive Director at RH Trading Limited, one of the largest retail and wholesale company in Papua New Guinea.

In welcoming Ms Valentin, Nambawan Super Chief Executive, Mr Garry Tunstall said “Ms Valentin brings a high level of experience and

knowledge to Nambawan Super. She is extremely passionate about ensuring the best service to Savings & Loan members whilst maintaining security of member’s funds. We are delighted to have her on our team”.

Mr Tunstall said “Nambawan Super has recently invested heavily in technology and administrative capabilities in order to lift

the standard of service our members deserve.

Maharlika’s experience in Banking and Accounting will be a real asset to Nambawan Savings and Loans”.

Nambawan Super is the leading and largest Superannuation Fund and manages funds of over K4.7 billion on behalf of 150,000 members from both the public workforce and private sector in PNG.

PNG Ports to promote PNG TV series

GRACE, an all-PNG crew and cast Television series, is set to take PNG global as it highlights the core of issues affecting PNG societies todayFamily Violence, Gender Equality and Children’s Rights.

And to make sure that the message is heard, PNG Ports Corporation Limited (PNGPCL) has anchored its support with a K10, 000 donation to Tribal Voice Arts Link, to produce, market and distribute the TV series.

Grace is the country’s first TV drama series and was produced and directed locally by emerging film maker McPolly Koima through his company, Tibal Voice Arts Link (TVAL).

The 10-part series is a straight entertaining story line. It is about a young Simbu girl, Grace, who dreams of being a lawyer and her story takes the viewers from her home in Kerowagi, Simbu to Port Moresby, to pursue her dream.

Back in the village, her mother has another dream for her, one that will land her in a polygamous relationship.

In the words of director, Mr Koima: “it is not a movie that you want to see and forget, but continue to watch over and over again”.

Mr Koima said AusAID, through its ‘Strongim Pipol, Strongim Nesen’ program, had funded the series to support TVAL’s aim in talking about gender equality, promoting women, discussing men’s perceptions of women, and expose these issues to allow for change in behavior and attitudes towards these issues.

PNGPCL’s Donor and Inter-government Relations Manager, David Peter, while making the presentation, said PNGPCL was happy to be a part of addressing such issues and commended the TVAL team for their initiative.

PNGPCL Corporate Communications Manager, Peter Korugl, said PNGPCL has a zero tolerance policy on gender based violence and the donation was consistent with this policy.

Mr Korugl also said the company promotes gender equality in the work place and assisting TVAL in producing and bringing to the fore issues affecting women in Papua New Guinea was just one way to show that the company was serious about promoting women in the society.

The donation is in line with PNGPCL’s community service obligation program where numerous other sponsorships have also been given in all areas of community services, human development and health throughout the country.

Mr Koima said PNGPCL involvement would be acknowledged in all its ten TV episodes through credit listing, and as a partner in the project.

Tribal Voice Arts Link is a syndicate media organization operating as a community based information or media vehicle specializing in radio and television drama production for community awareness, education and advocacy projects.

TVAL are currently working to produce a ten episode television drama series to address Family Violence, Gender Equality, Child Rights, and Disability, in PNG societies.

NAMBAWAN Super Chief Executive Officer, Garry Tunstall welcomes Newly appointed Savings & Loan Manager Maharlika Valentin with a hand shake.

How to utilise your leasing

FIRST Investment Finance Ltd has assisted with the asset fi nance needs of PNG businesses for many years.

There are two main types of leasing which companies can utilise.

Novated Leases - employees

A novated lease, where the vehicle and some of its running costs can be wrapped up into the lease.

Benefits for the employee: potential for income tax savings potential access to volume discounts if the employer has many vehicles under this scheme more flexibility in the choice of a car compared to a company car arrangement vehicle stays with the employee and can be transferred to a new employer if you change jobs

Benefits for the employer: a way to provide an effective increase in employees’ salaries with potentially minimal cost to the business potentially a cost effective alternative to operating a fleet of company vehicles

compared to company cars, the business does not assume any risk for the vehicles compared to company cars, employee vehicles are “off balance sheet”

Company Lease - employers

Benefits to your company:

Financing under a FIFL Lease can deliver operational benefits to your business: Tax benefits - the lease may be deductible

You get to use the vehicle immediately for the fi nance lease period

Fixed monthly repayments

Fixed interest rates throughout the term of the loan

When the Finance Lease expires, choose the best option for you:

Upgrade your vehicle

Make an offer with FIFL and obtain ownership of the vehicle

Contact CJ, James and Alfred at FIFL on 321 7900 for more information on our leasing and lending products, email contact@fi fl.com.pgor refer to our web site www.fi fl.com.pg

MVIL ensures you have the right licence for the right class of

TO drive cars and trucks in Papua New Guinea, you must have a licence to show that you can drive a particular type of vehicle properly.

Before you can learn to drive on a public street, you must have

a Learner’s Permit. To obtain a learner’s permit to drive a car, a utility or a motor cycle, you must be at least 16 years and 9 months old. To obtain a learner’s permit for any other class of vehicle you must be 21 years old and have al-

Road safety vital

Traffi c Signs

THE superintendant of motor traffic has the job of making sure that all the traffic travels along smoothly and safely. He does this sometimes by putting signs along the road showing drivers what they must do.

When you see these signs, you must always do as they say and you will help avoid accidents. Some of these signs are shown below:

Keep left Keep right

One Way

Two way

Turn left at any time with care

Form 1 Lane

Narrow Bridge

In Papua New Guinea, many bridges are only wide enough for vehicles to cross in one direction at a time.

There will usually be a warning sign to tell you that there is a narrow bridge ahead and one of the approaches will be controlled by a GIVE WAY sign.

If the give way sign is facing towards you as you approach the bridge, you must give way to every vehicle on the bridge and to those approaching it from the opposite direction to the way you are travelling.

Road Markings

To help the traffic move safely, there are sometimes lines painted on the road. These lines can be yellow or they can be white. If there are two long lines painted on the road that are together and not broken, that means that you must not pass the lines with part of your car.

If there is one continuous line and one broken line and the broken line is on your side of the road, then you may cross the road, but only if it is safe to do so. If the line which is broken is not on your side of the road, then you must not pass over it.

Where there is a single long broken line down the centre of the road, this is to show you where the centre of the road is and you must stay on the left hand side of the line, except to pass another car. You must be very careful that you do not have an accident with a car coming the other way.

Where a road is marked into three or four smaller roads called traffic lanes, you must always drive in one lane only, unless you are going to pass another car and then you must make sure that you can cross from one lane to the other safely, without causing any other car to put on its brakes or swerve and you must signal to show that you are changing lanes.

ready had a driving licence for one year.

You cannot get a driver’s licence until you are 17 years old. Until you are 21 years old you can only drive cars with less than 8 seats and other vehicles weighing two

vehicle

tonnes or less.

When you pass your driving test, you will be issued with your Provisional Licence for the fi rst one year and you must have a ‘P’ plate on both the back and front of your car when you are driving. You

must obey road laws and observe them very closely or your licence might be taken away from you by the superintendent of Motor Traffic.

Defensive driving avoids accidents

LEARNING how to drive is a lot easier than it looks. It looks intimidating from the passenger’s seat, or in the movies, but once you get behind the wheel and gently put your foot on the pedal, the process becomes very intuitive. If you’re a defensive driver and learn to take things slow in the beginning, you’ll be well on your way to mastering the basics. This article assumes you’ll be driving an automatic transmission vehicle. If you’re

not driving an automatic, click here to learn the basics of driving stick-shift (manual transmission), although the general process will still be the same.

Many accidents happen when vehicles unexpectedly fail while driving, putting you seriously at risk. The easiest way to prevent this is by practicing good vehicle maintenance tips every time you drive. Make sure your vehicle is fully operational? Check for any

warning lights or irregular smells, inspect the tread and inflation of your tires, and be sure your mirrors and windows are clean and positioned properly. Maintaining your vehicle this way can also cut down on expensive, larger repairs later. But keeping your car in good condition isn’t just about saving you money? it could save your life. The most important safety feature in any car is the driver. Always make sure the person getting

behind the wheel is fit to operate a vehicle. Don’t drive if you are sleepy, emotional, angry or anxious, as all of these can affect your judgment and decision-making skills. Be sure you’re fully aware of your surroundings and give yourself plenty of time to get where you need to go in order to cut down on tense or stressful situations. And of course? Never, ever drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol!

Even perfect drivers are unable to control every aspect of the open road? Especially when confronted with unexpected hazards or unpredictable or aggressive motorists. It’s important to watch for irregular behavior from other drivers, like frequent lane changes, speeding and swerving. If you do come across an unsafe driver, remain calm and keep your distance. www.ehow.com

Getting more out of hiring a vehicle

EJAY Plant and Equipment Hire is a locally owned business that has branches in Port Moresby, Lae and Mt Hagen.

The company was established in January 2014 with an aim to be part of the growing industry and to provide the best service possible which is affordable for its clients both corporate and private.

The business also has a car hire arm that offers a fi xed rate daily charges on all its fleet. And what better offer is there than the fact that you get a car with a full tank in fuel.

Ejay Hire Cars have their vehicles fully prepared to ensure comfort and safety for the customer. They put servicing their fleet a priority so that customers and clients are satisfied.

Those on business or families on holidays that need to get about in style and comfort at one of these centres can call in prior to their arrival or even at the counter for a great deal on the car of their choice.

There are Toyota Landcruiser Troopers, Toyota Hilux Fifth Element and sedans like the Toyota Camry and Toyota Vista and more. Call today to fi nd out about the car hire service and to get help on the right vehicle you need to get about your business or to take your family around sight seeing or when you just need a car for a day or two.

The staff will be too happy to help you out when you call in to enquire.

For more information, call 7369 2921, 73577102 or 72787903.

THE Toyota Landcruiser Pick-up is a favourite and so are its 5-door and Trooper (below) versions.

Papua New Guinea Supreme Court & National Court Office of the Chief Justice

PRESS STATEMENT

The Hon. Sir Salamo Injia, KT, GCL, ChIef Justice of Papua New Guinea today announced his decision to appoint at Leadership Tribunal to inquire into various allegations of misconduct of office against the Clerk of the Parliament Mr Vele Konivaro. The allegations of matters ranging from unauthorised alteration of Bills to misuse of Public Funds.

The appointment of the tribunal is made pursuant to a request received from the National Executive Council through the Head of State under the s 4 and s 5 of the Organic Law of Guarantee of Rights and Independence of Constitutional Office – Holders on 7th August 2014. The appointment was withheld to allow for court proceedings instituted by Mr Vele Konivaro to be finalized.Those proceedings were finalized on 3rd October 2014.

The Chief Justice also disclosed in instrument of appointment of the tribunal which sets out, amongst the things, the names of the Chairmen and members of the tribunal and fixes the date, time and the venue for the inquiry, as follows:

Monday 2nd March2015 at 2015 at 9:30am in Courtroom No.6 at the National Court Building at Waigani.

The Members of the Tribunal consists of serving judges of the National Court namely, The HONOURABLE DEREK HARTSHORN ML (Chairman); THE HONOURABLE MARTIN IPANG (Member) and The Honourable Sir Kina Bona (Member)

Dated this 23rd day of January 2015

office & ICT

Cost of buying IT online

HAVE you ever saved yourself a few kinas buying IT hardware online or while overseas? Think again. You may actually pay more for it in the long run. Price differences exist for several reasons, which may not always be clear immediately. A major reason is warranty, or lack thereof.

Warranty is one of the most important things to consider when purchasing IT hardware because without it, it can be costly in future and cause repair delays.

SC2020 ONLY K9,990*

Computers in Papua New Guinea are exposed to a harsher environment than other countries. Humidity, high temperatures, poor electricity supply and dust all add up to more equipment failure.

When you buy IT hardware overseas, online, or from a disreputable dealer for a lower cost, warranty and after-sales service may not be included in Papua New Guinea.

In fact, in most cases, when products are purchased overseas, warranty becomes void when shipped back to PNG.

Desktops and Dell laptops are a classic example. Although they can sometimes be found cheaper online, the prices usually don’t include the servicing and warranty by qualified technicians in PNG unless you request it specifically as an added cost. “Dell computers are usually built in Malaysia, and it does take a little longer to get to you when purchased through us—but it’s a small price to pay for an up-to-date, well treated computer designed for your exact needs with a solid warranty,” Mr Stewart said.

When bought from reputable distributors in PNG, warranty repairs are made by local technicians who carry many spares to ensure your computer is fixed sooner rather than later.

If you’re considering a new server, computer, laptop or notepad, to save warranty cost talk to a Dell Preferred distributors in around PNG. A few hundred extra kina could actually turn out to be a bargain.

How to keep your computer up to date

AN important part of owning a personal computer is keeping your software up-to-date. Security patches, upgrades, and hotfixes need to be installed to make your computer safer while connected to the Internet.

When using a computer running Microsoft Windows, this checklist can include windows, antivirus, antispyware, and firewall updates. However, for most computer users this can seem like a daunting task and I hardly ever work on a customer’s computer without finding at least one missing needed update concerning hardware or software.

The Basic Updates are:

Windows Updates

At the very least, you should keep your computer up-to-date with the latest Windows security patches and updates for your operating system. Microsoft has made it fairly easy to keep everything updated by including an automatic updates feature in Windows XP and Windows Vista.

Although its not always advised to install Windows updates when they are immediately released, it is a good idea to install these updates shortly after they are released.

In most cases, Windows updates are created to fix security holes and vunerabilities in Windows that can be exploited by hackers to take over your computer or use it to send spam or viruses. If you don’t have Windows set to automatically update, you can visit the following website to check your computer for these updates and download them. http://windowsupdate.microsoft.

com

Antivirus Updates

Keeping your antivirus software up-to-date is also an important step in keeping your computer running properly while connected to the Internet.

I run across many computers that have antivirus software installed, but the virus signatures have not been updated in several months or even years. Your antivirus software is only

as good as the last virus signature update you have installed. If a virus was discovered yesterday, and you havent updated your antivirus product today, then you are susceptible to being infected by that particular virus.

I have written step-by-step instructions for updating the virus signatures for Norton, McAfee, and Trend Micro antivirus products. Most free antivirus programs such as AVAST, AVG, and Anti-Vir check for updates on a daily basis as long as your computer is connected to the Internet.

Anti-Spyware Updates

Whether you are running Lavasoft Ad-Aware SE, Spybot Search and Destroy, Windows Defender, Webroot SpySweeper, or another antispyware product, you need to update the software regularly for it to be effective. Just like antivirus software, software to remove adware and spyware can’t remove problems if it doesnt have that program in its database.

Unfortunately, many of these programs don’t update themselves automatically. When you open your antispyware program look for a button or tab to update the adware database and do this on a regular monthly basis before scanning your system.

Firewall Updates

Most firewall programs will prompt you that there is a newer version to download. Its always a good idea to download these updates when they become available.

Other Updates

What about the other programs installed on your computer, do they need to be updated to remain secure? The easy answer is yes, however most of these other programs don’t automatically tell you when a new version is available.

The average computer user usually doesn’t have the time or the patience to check all these other installed programs and update them. However, a couple utilities have come to the rescue and provide fairly in-depth checks

Homelessness funding push

VICTORIAN Premier Daniel Andrews has called for an urgent commitment from the Federal Government to support homelessness services in the state before current funding arrangements expire.

The Commonwealth provided $115 million in funding to the states and territories under the National Partnerships Agreement on Homelessness for 2014-2015, with the deal due to expire on June 30.

Mr Andrews said he had written to Prime Minister Tony Abbott, urging him to continue the funding, but had not received a response.

He said the Victorian Government had committed to funding the agreement for the next three years, with $29.1 million set aside for homeless services this year.

“There’s $23 million at stake,” Mr Andrews said.

“The Victorian Government’s share is fully funded and we’ve confirmed that for the next three years, but the Commonwealth’s funding ends at the end of June this year.”

He said an increasing number of women and children who had experienced family violence were using homelessness services. “Only additional funding and additional effort will help us deal with both family violence but also homelessness right across our state.” -ABC news

Abbott deflects queries

AUSTRALIAN PM Tony Abbott has refused to be drawn on reports he asked deputy Julie Bishop not to challenge him, amid ongoing leadership rumblings.

Mr Abbott is facing a popularity slump and his LiberalNational coalition suffered a shock defeat in Queensland state elections at the weekend.

He has insisted the government must get “back to work”.

Sky News in Australia reports that Ms Bishop refused to assure Mr Abbott she would not challenge him.

When asked by reporters whether such a conversation had happened, Mr Abbott

said: “I am not going to play these insider games ... but I don’t think the public are interested.”

He said he was not prepared to hold a leadership ballot, but also refused to directly say whether he still had Ms Bishop’s backing, insisting: “We are friends, we are part of the leadership team. We support each other. We always have, we always will.”

Asked if he had lost control of the backbench, he said he had confidence in his colleagues and that they knew “every government goes through difficult patches”.

Mr Abbott, who was visiting a childcare centre in Sydney’s west, declared “Back to Work

At a glance

LOSS: The Liberal-National coalition suffered a shock defeat in Queensland state elections at the weekend.

SUPPORT: According to Abbott, he and Ms Julie Bishop are friends, they are part of the leadership team - they always have and always will.

UPBEAT: Tony Abbott has confidence in his colleagues, saying they knew every government goes through difficult patches.

Tuesday”, insisting that stability was now the main focus.

Ms Bishop, meanwhile, was quoted on Monday as saying she would “not reveal the details of private conversations I have with any leaders, let alone my own prime minis-

ter”. Cabinet meetings are being held on Tuesday and Wednesday, and analysts say leadership of the government is likely to be discussed.

Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has also been suggested as a possible rival to Mr Abbott in recent

Quick news

ABBOTT TASKED

weeks, along with Social Services Minister Scott Morrison.

Mr Abbott’s approval ratings have fallen below 30% this week, partly in response to his decision to award a knighthood to Queen Elizabeth’s husband Prince Philip.

He was seen as a key factor in the crushing defeat of the Liberal party in Queensland’s elections on Saturday.

On Monday, he confirmed the scrapping of one of his signature policies - a paid parental leave scheme.

He said it was “off the table” as the country currently could not afford it.

-BBC news

Greste ‘angst’ for jailed colleagues

AL-JAZEERA journalist Peter Greste says he is relieved to be free but feels “incredible angst” at leaving behind two of his colleagues in jail in Egypt.

Mr Greste was freed from prison and deported on Sunday after 400 days behind bars. He is now in Cyprus, en route to Australia.

Mr Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed were arrested in 2013 on charges of spreading false news and aiding the Muslim Brotherhood.

Mr Fahmy and Mr Mohamed remain jailed.

In an interview with alJazeera, Mr Greste described his release as “a massive step forward” for the Egyptian

authorities. “I just hope that Egypt keeps going down that path with the others,” the Australian journalist added.

Mr Fahmy, who holds dual Egyptian and Canadian citizenship, could be freed if he renounces his Egyptian nationality, presidential sources say.

Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird said on Monday

that Mr Fahmy’s release was “imminent”, without elaborating.

But there are still concerns about Mr Mohamed, an Egyptian who holds no dual nationality.

Speaking on Monday, Mr Greste said he “wasn’t expecting” his release on Sunday and had been released with what felt like “just a few minutes’ notice”.

He described a “real mix of emotions” after learning he would be freed, with both a “sense of relief and excitement but also real stress in having to say goodbye to my colleagues and friends - people who’ve really become family inside that prison”.

-BBC news

PETER Greste

Journalists do their job for the good of others at the risk of their safety. The bottom line

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has taken Prime Minister Tony Abbott to task for dismissing speculation about a challenge to his leadership as insider chatter. “It’s not insider talk for Australians to want to know who the prime minister is going to be,” Mr Shorten told reporters in Melbourne.

BACK TO WORK

Tony Abbott has declared “Back to Work Tuesday” as he continues to try to quash speculation that his leadership is under threat. Poor polling for the Prime Minister and the massive swing against the Liberal National Party in Queensland has fuelled calls from within the party to replace Mr Abbott.

OMBUDSMAN

An ombudsman is a watchdog or “citizen’s defender” independent of the elected government and charged with watching over the public sector and some private agencies

FATAL MALL BLAST

One man is dead and another has suffered burns to 80 per cent of his body in an explosion at a Perth shopping centre.

Two other men were seriously injured in the explosion at the Galleria shopping centre in suburban Morley about 9.30am. The cause of the explosion is unknown but lightning from a severe electrical storm has been ruled out.

LEADERSHIP

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has told Tony Abbott she won’t challenge for the Liberal leadership. Ms Bishop told a cabinet meeting in Canberra on Tuesday she had not been campaigning for the prime minister’s job or ringing backbenchers to canvass support.

THE Victorian Government has set aside $29.1 million for homeless services this year. Picture: ABC

I hope Egypt keeps releasing the other journalists ...

PETER GRESTE Australia

Sexual abuse victims urged to speak

VICTIMS of sexual abuse at the hands of the clergy are being encouraged to come forward under a new policy released by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.

The policy, which the Catholic Church has been working on since the 1990s, outlines clear steps for investigating wrongdoing within the church and encourages members of the congregation to report sexual abuse.

The Director of Right Relationships in Ministry, Brother Frank Hough, helped formulate the new policy.

He told Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat program, under the new framework, people wanting to report sexual misconduct could seek advice from a contact person.

“We have what is called a contact person who is the first port of call, so to speak, for a person to make a complaint,” he said.

“They explain to the person their options of going through the criminal process, or through the church process, but the person has the option of taking the criminal process or the church process.”

Brother Hough said hopefully under the new protocols and guidelines, people from Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands would find it less daunting to report allegations of sexual abuse within the church.

“We find that in the societies in the Pacific, which are often male dominant with a great respect for church leaders and priests and who wish do not bring shame upon the church, the power of being a leader and chief and so on, that people are very reticent to bring claims against the body of a church or priest and more particularly in rural areas,” he said. -ABC news

Record dry January for 13 places

RECORDS tumbled during the particularly warm, dry and sunny weather last month, with 13 places chalking up their driest January on record.

They include Wellington, where just 2 millimetres fell at the airport, and Kerikeri and Paraparaumu, which received just 4mm. The parchest place was the Waipara West weather station in north Canterbury, which got just 1mm of rain for the month.

Auckland had its seconddriest January on record with 6mm being recorded in Mangere, Niwa’s monthly climate

summary for January says.

Places that had their second-driest January month were Warkworth with 11mm, Whanganui with 2mm, Westport with 56mm, and Dunedin Airport with 22mm.

Palmerston North had its third-driest January with 11mm, as did Nelson with 10mm. Invercargill had its fourth driest with 37mm.

Altogether, 43 places had their fourth-lowest or drier January rainfall figures.

The 18mm recorded in Christchurch was half the city’s normal January rainfall.

The dry, warm and sunny weather was caused by higher than normal air pressures over and southeast of New Zealand, with an unusual northeasterly airflow over the country, Niwa said. “It was exceptionally dry in parts of Northland, Auckland, Taranaki, ManawatuWhanganui, Kapiti Coast, Wellington, Marlborough, north Canterbury and Central Otago where rainfall totals for the month were less than 10 per cent of their respective January normal.”

-STUFF news.com

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THE Catholic Church in Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands hopes victims will find it easier to report clergy sexual abuse under its new policy. Picture: ABC

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Indian churches fear rising Hindu nationalism

A SERIES of attacks on Catholic churches in the Indian capital has minority groups warning about the rise of Hindu nationalism under the leadership of prime minister Narendra Modi.

The latest attack follows a series of government gaffes that have offended religious minorities, including an attempt to cancel Christmas.

On Monday the leaders of St Alphonsa Catholic Church found the South Delhi house of worship had been vandalised, the fifth attack on a Catholic church in the Indian capital in recent months.

Police in Delhi claim that the attack was a robbery, but church leaders suspect something more sinister.

“The scenario is pretty bad

Petrol bomb attack fatal

AT least seven people have been burned to death and 15 others injured, some seriously, in a petrol bomb attack on a bus in eastern Bangladesh. Police said the bus had been full of sleeping passengers when it was attacked near the town of Chauddagram.

It is the latest in a spate of attacks on buses, lorries and cars since anti-government protests began last month. Opposition leader Khaleda Zia called for the protests on the anniversary of last year’s election.

However, she has denied that her Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its Islamist allies are behind the firebombings.

“Seven passengers were burnt to death in the bus after the petrol bomb was thrown at 04:00 (20:00 GMT Monday),” district police chief Tuttul Chakrabarty told AFP news agency.

“Five of the passengers are fighting for their life. They have been shifted to a hospital in the capital.”

Police officials said authorities had raided nearby villages but no arrests had been made.

-BBC news

Soldier gets death sentence

A SOUTH Korean soldier who shot dead five of his colleagues and injured seven others has been sentenced to death, Yonhap news agency reports.

At a glance

TARGET: The latest attack follows a series of government gaffes that have offended religious minorities, including an attack to cancel Christmas - the symbol if Christainity.

APPROACH: Police in Delhi claim the attack was a robbery, but the church leaders suspect something more sinister.

COLD SHOULDER: The minority religious groups - Christians and Muslims - in Inia claim they are being ignored by the Modi-led government.

all over India for Christians and Muslims as well, and this is certainly worrying because this is happening right under the nose of prime minister,” said Father Dominic Emmanuel, spokesman for the Delhi Catholic Union.

“These attacks are certainly connected to the right wing Hindu fundamentalists whose

voice is getting stronger and have been emboldened by last year’s election of the BJP.”

Mr Modi’s political party, the BJP, has its roots in the Hindu fundamentalist group the RSS, which has been accused of recently trying to convert people to their religion by force.

Secularism is a sensitive

topic for Mr Modi, who has been accused of not doing enough as chief minister of Gujarat state to prevent the deaths of up to 2,000 Muslims in religious riots in 2002.

The vast majority of India’s 1.2 billion people are Hindu, but there are still hundreds of thousands of citizens who belong to other religions, like Islam and Christianity, many of which say they are being ignored by this government.

The Modi administration recently came under fire for printing old versions of the country’s constitutional preamble in newspapers on India’s national day, a version which omitted the word “secular”, which was added in 1976.

It has also been criticised

for proclaiming December 25 as Good Governance Day, to mark the birthday of former BJP prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

“I have told the government that if they want to increase business with western countries, in particularly America, what do they think?” Father Emmanuel said.

“Do they think that America or Europe, or Australia would be happy to hear that on Christmas Day you are converting it into Good Governance Day, undermining the meaning of Christmas and of the birth of Jesus Christ - not just for Christian community in India, but what impact will it have on the rest of the Christian world?”

-ABC news

The sergeant opened fire in June 2014 at his post near the North Korean border and fled, sparking a manhunt. He was captured two days later. The incident reignited discussion about South Korea’s military culture.

All South Korean males must serve about two years in the army under the conscription system.

The sergeant’s attack had been previously attributed to his “difficulties in adapting to military life”.

The 23-year-old recruit, surnamed Im in previous reports but named as Lim by Yonhap, was found guilty of killing and injuring his comrades by detonating a grenade and firing at them.

-BBC news

Philippine leader orders charges over police killings

PHILIPPINES president Benigno Aquino has ordered criminal charges be filed against those behind the killing of more than 40 police officers in renewed violence with a rebel group in the country’s south.

Authorities are investigating three rebel leaders believed to be behind a gun battle which killed 44 police officers who were out to arrest two Jemaah Islamiyah terrorists in the southern Maguindanao province.

The fighting started after police entered the remote

town of Mamasapano, held by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) without coordinating with the rebels as required under a ceasefire agreement.

Security forces have stepped up their alert following reports of some 200 Muslim rebels seen amassing in a remote village in the region.

The police deaths have shocked and enraged the nation and imperilled a peace pact with MILF.

Despite the clash, government peace adviser Teresita Deles said actions to main-

tain the peace agreement must continue.

“If we give up, then we’re saying we embrace the way it was - the cycle of violence,” Ms Deles said.

The main gate of national police headquarters in suburban Manila has become an unofficial memorial bedecked with flowers, candles and other tokens left by mourners.

The Philippine interior minister said on Sunday he did not know in advance of plans for the anti-terror raid that triggered the bloodbath.

Manuel Roxas, who is in

charge of the national police, said he had no foreknowledge of the January 25 operation.

“They did not tell me about this ... I’m not saying I would have known better, but I also can’t help feeling I was not given a chance to ensure there was better coordination,” he told members of the police Special Action Force (SAF) at their headquarters.

“Your job is tough and dangerous. It is the duty of the state to give you the full support, equipment and training and not to send you into hopeless operations.” -ABC news

THE majority of India’s 1.2 billion people are Hindu, but hundreds of thousands of citizens belong to other religions like Islam and Christianity.

Picture: ABC/AFP

PHILIPPINE President Benigno Aquino delivers a speech in front of the caskets of the slain police members in Manila.

Picture: ABC/REUTERS

Picture: ABC

Japan ponders army rescue

SHINZO Abe has called for a debate on the possibility of the military rescuing Japanese citizens abroad, in the wake of the killings of two hostages by Islamic State militants.

IS jihadists this week released video purporting to show the beheading of journalist Kenji Goto, 47, who was captured in late October.

It came a week after footage was issued appearing to show the beheaded body of Haruna Yukawa, who the militants seized in August after he went to Syria to launch a security company.

Mr Abe reiterated his denunciation of the militants and said Japan was firmly committed to fulfilling its responsibility as a member of the global community in fighting terrorism and that it needed to be able to protect its citizens.

“Preserving the safety of Japanese nationals is the responsibility of the government, and I am the person who holds the most responsibility,” he told a parliamentary committee, adding that he wanted to discuss a framework for rescuing Japanese in danger.

In a show of defiance on Sunday, Mr Abe vowed to boost Japan’s humanitarian aid to the Middle East.

He told a parliamentary panel that Japan, whose military has long been constrained by the postWorld War Two pacifist constitution, could not take part in US-led air strikes on IS, nor would it provide logistical support.

Analysts say the murders mark a “wake-up call” for Japan and that its response to the crisis, at times flat-footed, reveals the weakness of its diplomatic resources in the region.

“The government lacked information and that made it difficult for them to handle the situation,” said Takashi Kawakami, a security expert and professor at Takushoku University.

“It’s a wake-up call. After this experience, they have to boost intelligence operations at home and overseas.”

China cities fail air standards

NEARLY 90 per cent of China’s big cities failed to meet air quality standards in 2014, but that was still an improvement on 2013, the country’s environment ministry says.

Amid growing public disquiet about smog and other environmental risks, China said last year it would “declare war on pollution” and it has started to eliminate substandard industrial capacity and reduce coal consumption.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection said on its website that only eight of the 74 cities it monitors managed

to meet national standards in 2014 on a series of pollution measures such as PM2.5, which is a reading of particles found in the air, carbon monoxide and ozone.

In 2013, only three citiesHaikou on the island province of Hainan, the Tibetan capital of Lhasa and the coastal resort city of Zhoushan - met the standards.

They were joined in 2014 by Shenzhen, Huizhou and Zhuhai in south-east Guangdong province, Fuzhou in neighbouring Fujian and Kunming in the south-west.

Of the 10 worst-performing

cities in 2014, seven were located in the heavy industrial province of Hebei, which surrounds the capital Beijing, the ministry said.

The cities of Baoding, Xingtai, Shijiazhuang, Tangshan, Handan and Hengshui, all in Hebei, filled the top six places. The ministry said the average PM2.5 reading in the Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin region stood at 93 micrograms per cubic metre last year.

The state standard is 35 micrograms, but China does not expect to bring the national average down to that level before 2030. -ABC news

SPECIAL PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SECTOR REFORM AND SERVICE DELIVERY

NOTICE OF HEARING

TEACHER LEAVE FARES

The Special Parliamentary Committee on Public Sector Reform and Service Delivery is responsible for improving public sector management. The Committee is concerned with the complete administrative failure inherent in the leave fare debacle and the inadequate administrative response of both the Department of Education and certain Provincial Governments.

The Committee intends to convene an urgent hearing into the leave fare system to determine: who is responsible for the current situation, whether funds were transferred in good time to provinces, why funds have not been transferred to teachers in some Provinces but have in others, where the funds that were purportedly transferred to provinces are currently how leave fares can now be expeditiously transferred to teachers the administrative implications for education generally that arise from the leave fare debacle options for a better system e.g. including leave fares into normal salary plus a component to cover applicable tax

The Committee requires the attendance the following persons/agencies at its hearing to commence at 9am in the B2 Conference Room in Parliament on 6 February 2015:

9am The Secretary Department of Education and responsible agency personnel 10.30am The Provincial Treasurer and Provincial Administrator of all Provinces who have not transferred leave fares to teachers. (Provincial Treasurers are to bring relevant financial records to the hearing).

3pm The Secretary Department of Finance, the Commissioner Internal Revenue Service and the Secretary Department of Personnel Management

Persons who fail to attend the hearing without valid excuse may be dealt with for contempt.

The Committee will present its findings to Parliament during the next session in February 2015.

OF China’s 10 worst-performing cities in 2014, seven were located in the heavy industrial province of Hebei, which surrounds the capital, Beijing.

JAPAN’S PM wants the nation to consider if the military should play a role in rescuing citizens abroad. Picture: ABC

Hon. Bire Kimisopa MP Chairman

Screen time affects teens

PARENTS have long suspected it, but now doctors have proof: the more time teenagers spend on computers or mobile phones, the less they sleep - especially if the gadget is used just before bedtime.

The evidence is so strong that health watchdogs should overhaul guidelines for electronic device use by youngsters, the experts said.

The team surveyed nearly 10,000 people aged 16 to 19 in Norway in 2012.

The teens were questioned about their sleeping patterns, how long they looked at a screen outside of school hours and the type of gadget they used.

The respondents said they needed between eight and nine hours’ sleep on average to feel rested.

Those with screen time of more than four hours per day were three-and-a-half times likelier to sleep fewer than five hours at night. Using an electronic device in the hour before bedtime badly affects both onset of sleep and its duration. -AAP news

UK lawmakers to vote on three-person babies

MPs will hold a crucial vote later to decide whether to allow the creation of babies using DNA from three people.

They will have a free vote on the technique, which is aimed at preventing deadly genetic diseases being passed from mother to child.

The UK could become the first country to legalise three-person babies and it could help about 150 couples a year.

It has sparked fierce ethical debate and senior Church figures have called for the procedure to be blocked.

However, if there is a “yes” vote in the Commons, then the first three-person baby could be born as soon as next year. The technique, which was developed in Newcastle, should help women like Sharon Bernardi, from Sunderland, who lost all seven of her children

PURPOSE: The technique to create babies from using DNA from three people is basically to prevent genetic diseases being passed from mother to child.

OPPOSITION: The technique has spraked fierce ethical debate and senior Church figures have called for the procedure to be blocked.

IMPLEMENTATION: If passed, the first three-person baby could be born as soon as next year.

to mitochondrial disease. Mitochondria are the tiny compartments inside nearly every cell of the body that convert food into useable energy. They have their own DNA which does not affect characteristics such as appearance.

Defective mitochondria, which are passed down only from the mother, lead to brain damage, muscle wasting, heart failure and blindness.

The technique uses a modified version of IVF to combine the DNA of the two parents with the healthy mitochondria of a donor woman.

It results in babies with 0.1% of their DNA from the second woman and is a permanent change that would be passed down through the generations.

The government backs the measure in principle.

However, MPs will be given

a free vote, as it is an issue of conscience, rather than being forced down party lines.

Prof Doug Turnbull, the director of the Wellcome Trust centre for mitochondrial research where the technique was pioneered, urged MPs to vote in favour.

He told BBC News: “This is research that has been suggested by the patients, supported by patients and is for the patients, and that’s an important message.”

That message was backed up by calls from British Nobel Prize-winning scientists and 40 leading scientists from 14 countries.

But not everyone agrees.

Last week the Catholic and Anglican Churches in England said the idea was not safe or ethical, not least because it involved the destruction of embryos.

Mass deat sentences under fire

Other groups, including Human Genetics Alert, say the move would open the door to further genetic modification of children in the future.

A review by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics, as well as a public consultation by the fertility regulator, argued the creation of three-person babies was ethical.

Three scientific reviews by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) suggest the technique is “not unsafe”.

Yet some scientists argue those reviews were flawed.

Dr Ted Morrow, from the University of Sussex, believes there are still uncertainties.

“I have some concerns about the safety, I’m really not happy that the reviews have been as exemplary as other people think they are.”

-BBC news

AN Egyptian court has violated the country’s international human rights obligations by sentencing 183 men to death for killing 13 policemen, the European Union says.

“Today’s decision of a court in Egypt to sentence 183 defendants to death following a mass trial is in violation of Egypt’s international human rights obligations,” the EU’s foreign service said in a statement.

The statement recalled that the EU categorically opposes capital punishment, which it says is cruel and inhuman and fails to act as a deterrent.

Monday’s verdict, which can be appealed, came after the initial sentences were sent to the grand mufti, the Egyptian government’s official interpreter of Islamic law, for ratification.

The policemen were killed in an attack on a police station in Kerdasa, a town on the outskirts of Cairo, on August 14, 2013. -AAP news

International court to rule on Balkan genocide cases

THE International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague is to announce its ruling on genocide cases between Croatia and Serbia.

The Croatian government has alleged that Serbia committed genocide in the town of Vukovar and elsewhere in 1991.

Serbia later filed a counter claim over the expulsion of more than 200,000 Serbs from Croatia.

About 20,000 people died during the 1991-1995 war, when Croatia broke away from Yugoslavia.

Croatia filed its initial case with the ICJ - the top UN court - in 1999, accusing Serbs of tar-

The bottom line

geting ethnic Croats during the conflict.

The town of Vukovar was devastated when it was occupied by Serbs in 1991.

Croatia also wants Serbia to pay compensation for damages “to persons and properties as well as to the Croatian economy and environment”.

The BBC’s Anna Holligan in the Hague says that for some this legal judgement will help to shed light on what actually happened during the darkest years of the Balkans.

Although genocide is the most serious of international crimes,

it is also the hardest to prove, our correspondent adds.

The ICJ is to decide whether either country or both are guilty of genocide, incitement to commit genocide or complicity in genocide.

Both sides have said they will accept the rulings.

Relations between the two countries have improved in recent years but in 2012 Serbia was outraged when Operation Storm commander Ante Gotovina, was cleared on appeal by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Non-compliance to orders by the international court risks international sanctions.

Picture: BBC

Revenge Porn scam backfires

LOS ANGELES: A US man has been convicted of extortion and identity theft for running a “revenge porn” website hosting more than 10,000 sexually explicit photos.

Kevin Christopher Bollaert, 28, had denied 31 counts of conspiracy, identity theft and extortion over the racket, which allegedly earned him tens of thousands of dollars.

He could face up to 24 years in prison. A sentencing date was not immediately set.

Bollaert created the website ugotposted.com in December 2012, allowing explicit photos to be posted without the subject’s permission.

IN WRONG HANDS

United States weighs arms deliveries to Ukraine

WASHINGTON: President

Barack Obama’s aides and top commanders are seriously considering providing arms and more military equipment to Ukraine as its army struggles against proRussian separatists.

The Obama administration had previously ruled out sending weapons to Ukraine’s government but the failure of economic sanctions to persuade Russia to halt military assistance for the separatists has prompted a second look at the option, officials told AFP.

Some senior figures in the administration now backed the move despite earlier concerns about triggering a dangerous escalation with Russia, officials said.

Washington so far has provided non-lethal assistance to Ukraine, including flak jackets, medical supplies, radios and night-vision goggles.

“What’s being discussed is perhaps we should begin providing defensive weapons, defensive equipment, to Ukraine,” a senior defense official said.

The view on what to provide Ukraine “has matured” given Russia’s backing of the separatists and recent violations of a ceasefire agreement, a second official said.

The discussion inside the administration comes as Russia has ramped up deliveries of tanks and other military hardware to separatists in eastern Ukraine over the past month, officials said.

The New York Times first reported the policy shift, which coincided with an appeal by a group of former senior civil-

ian and US military leaders urging Washington to supply arms to the Ukrainian government.

Authors of the report included officials with close ties to the White House, including the former numberthree-ranking civilian at the Pentagon, Michele Flournoy, and the former US ambassador to NATO, Ivo Daalder.

“The West needs to bolster deterrence in Ukraine by raising the risks and costs to Russia of any renewed major offensive,” said the re-

port published by the Atlantic Council, the Brookings Institution and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

“That requires providing direct military assistance -in far larger amounts than provided to date and including lethal defensive arms -- so that Ukraine is better able to defend itself,” said the report, which was signed by former NATO commander Admiral James Stavridis and the former deputy commander for US forces in Europe, General Charles Wald. -AAP

The website “turned their public humiliation and betrayal into a commodity with the potential to devastate lives”, California’s Attorney General Kamala Harris said at the time.

The photos, commonly known as revenge porn, are typically obtained consensually during a relationship but then posted without permission, or are simply stolen or hacked.

Unlike other revenge porn websites where photos are anonymous, ugotposted.com required the poster to include the subject’s full name, location, age and Facebook profile link.

Bollaert created a second website, changemyreputation.com, which he used when individuals contacted ugotposted.com asking for their photos to be removed from the site.

He then allegedly extorted victims by offering, from the changemyreputation website, to remove content from ugotposted.com for a fee of up to $US350 ($A450), allegedly making tens of thousands of dollars, according to court documents.

California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law banning revenge porn in October 2013.

-AAP news

United States expands Venezuela visa bans

THE United States has imposed visa restrictions on unnamed Venezuelan officials it accuses of human rights violations and corruption.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said the measures were an attempt to violate Venezuelan sovereignty.

They build on sanctions imposed last year on officials alleged to have violated the rights of protesters.

The list of officials banned from entering the US has been extended, and now includes family members.

“We are sending a clear message that human rights abusers, those who profit from public corruption, and their families are not welcome in the United States,” said US state department spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

Mr Maduro reacted angrily and said he would write a letter to US President Barack Obama.

“We can’t let an empire that has been eyeing all of us pretend or think it has the right to sanction the country of [Simon] Bolivar,” Mr Maduro said, making reference to the Venezuela-born hero of Latin American liberation.

The sanctions imposed in December were aimed at of-

ficials accused over their role in suppressing anti-government protests that shook Venezuela in the first six months of 2014.

The new visa restrictions were announced a day after Mr Maduro accused US VicePresident Joe Biden of plotting a coup against his Socialist government during an energy summit of Caribbean leaders in Washington.

Mr Biden’s office called the allegation “baseless and patently false”.

“President Maduro’s accusations are clearly part of an effort to distract from the concerning situation in Venezuela, which includes repeated violations of freedom of speech, assembly, and due process,” read a statement.

-BBC news

VENEZUELAN government supporters and civil servants have marched against the US sanctions. Picture: BBC

that sparked off with the Sarajevo assasination in 1939.

A MAN accused of belonging to a local gang is held in a lorry by members of the self-styled “community police” force in Petaquillas, Mexico. Approximately 500 members of the “community police” took control of the village at the request of residents tired of organised crime in the area.

Picture: BBC

Human rights abusers are not welcome in US ...

JEN PSAKI US

crossword: 10840

Complete the grid so that every row, column and 2x3 box contains every digit from 1 to 6 inclusive

Solution to puzzle SL0844

stars

March 20 - April 19

The stubborn streak that is one of your most pronounced characteristics has its pluses and minuses. A plus is you’ll stick with something or, indeed, somebody you believe in. Now, however, you’re refusing even to consider changes that aren’t just timely, they’d lead to rewarding new activities, pursuits or alliances.

April 20 - May 19

While some of the confusion you’re facing is due to Mercury’s retrograde cycle, as much is simply a part of the changes reshaping your life. Actually, what’s most important is ensuring you explore every idea or offer, since what seems least promising now could turn out best in the long run.

May 21 - June 20

Sometimes you forget that not everybody enjoys talking over ideas as much as you do. Bear this in mind now, and when certain individuals cut short conversations, you’ll realise it’s not because they’re not interested. They are. It’s just they’ve little to say about these or, in fact, much else.

June 21 - July 21

Ideas or offers that come from out of the blue are exciting, even if you’re unsure where they’re going. However, because these are influenced by fortunate Jupiter, they’re worth exploring. At minimum you’ll learn something. But the odds are good these will turn out far better than you conceived possible.

July 22 - August 22

There’s a great deal to be said for making a single decision, then sticking with it. However, those around you seem to change their thinking and, therefore, their commitments virtually every day. While annoying, during a period as unsettled as this one, frequent changes aren’t just inevitable, they’re informative.

August 23 - September 22

Sometimes opportunities are recognisable the moment they appear. But those currently coming your way may seem more of a disruption than anything else. That being the case, you’ll want to explore every idea or offer, even those that seem unlikely. They’re the ones that could turn out best.

September 23 - October 22

Most Libras go out of their way to be helpful to others. While this isn’t always acknowledged by the individual in question, you don’t mind. In fact, you’ve a firm conviction such kindnesses are returned. Consequently, you’re confident these will come back to you, and in a timely and appropriate manner.

October 23 - November 22

Much to your dismay, it’s becoming clear that certain arrangements you struggled to organise must be substantially altered or finish entirely. Upsetting as this seems now, it’s progress. Changes show how far things have moved and, equally, if these must come to an end, it means your objectives have been achieved.

November 23 - December 22

Few things excite you more than an exciting idea, particularly if those involved are full of enthusiasm. Yet with the retrograde Mercury triggering confusion, those upbeat feelings won’t be enough to keep things going. You’ll not only need to focus on details, you’ll have to double check them frequently.

December 21 - January 19

Ages ago you observed what and who is worth your time and what wasn’t. While sticking to your previous list has streamlined your thinking and decision making, things have changed. Enough you’re missing out on brilliant ideas and individuals. The time has come for you to rethink these, and in depth.

January 20 - February 17

Intriguing as new ideas may be to discuss, making them part of your life is another matter entirely. While you’re happily benefiting from recent changes, that’s enough for the time being. Perhaps. Still, by the powerful Aquarius New Moon, in two weeks, you’ll be ready to give these serious thought.

February 18 - March 19

As easygoing as you can be about lots of things, several relationships are dear to your heart. These aren’t necessarily romantic, they could involve family, friends or even colleagues. While most are thriving, in one or two you’re giving far too much. The time has come to draw a line.

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Fiji officials happy with trial outcomes

Athletes impressive in time trials at first national meet

PACIFIC GAMES

ATHLETICS Fiji officials were pleased yesterday with the turnout as the first national trial started at the ANZ Stadium in Suva yesterday.

However, Fiji would not be able to field athletes in all events at the Pacific Games.

Team Fiji manager Litia

Senibulu said the middle and long-distance events posed a challenge as very few or no athletes showed up for the events.

“There is only one female runner for the 1500m, Inia Sili who won silver in the Mini Games is not running in the 3000m,” she said.

“Similarly, we had only one male and one female competitor in the 110m hurdles.

The numbers for the sprint events were good.

“Also impressive was the number of people who turned up for field events such as the shot put and discus.

Fiji has been losing out on the medals in the field events.”

In the men’s 100m Banuve Tabakaucoro blitzed through with a time of 10.52s, Francis Kirikirikula came second with 11.13s while Kease Nadroka was third running in at 11.61s. In the women’s 100m Sisilia Seavula pipped Younis Bese as she clocked 12.25s.

Bese had a time of 12.52s and just behind her was Laisani Moceisawna with 12.56s.

Makalesi Tumalevu and Waisake Dausoko were

Team Fiji aims to win more medals

PACIFIC GAMES

TEAM Fiji will be represented by 28 sports at this year’s Pacific Games to be held in Papua New Guinea.

At a glance

TRIAL: The first national trial started at the ANZ Stadium in Suva yesterday.

LITIA SENIBULU: Team manager Fiji.

FEMALE RUNNER: Only one female for the 1500m, Inia Sili who won a Silver medal in the mini games.

FIELD EVENTS: The number of people who turned up for field events was impressive.

LONG JUMPS: Makalesi Tumalevu and Waisake Dausoko were impressive in the long jumps.

impressive in the long jumps.

Eugene Volmer and Milika Tuivanuavou showed why they were best in the triple event.

Athletes for Pacific Games in July will be announced after the final trials in Easter.

Shalveen Chand – Fiji

149

SI to send 25 athletes

PACIFIC GAMES

TWENTY five athletetes will represent Solomon Islands in the upcoming 15th South Pacific Games in Papua New Guinea schedule for July 4-18.

This is a big number for the Athletics Solomon to prepare the squad within the 165 days.

President of the Athletics Solomon and President of National Olympic Committee Martin Rara admitted that they have a big task ahead to do when looking at the big number of athletes allocated for them. He said to kick of their preparation they will clean up their training venue at King George six sport field this

weekend. He said once the venue is clean up they will gather all the athletes together and start putting on seriously trainings to select best runners for the squad.

He said at the stage only long distance runners are doing road walk training along the Honiara main highway because of the condition of the field.

He said only a few athletes are doing their joggings at King George six field but they have to run along only on the clean areas. Rara said several new long distance and sprinters are expecting to be selected into the final squad especially for the relay team. He said for the men’s long distance

runners they will rely on Hendry Mabe, Chris Lency, Chris Votu, Rosefelo Siosi and new uprising long distance runner Benjamin Doke of Malaita.

For the women’s long distance runner he said, they will rely on Sharon Ferisua and Diana Matekali and youngest runner Mary Sodorongo.

For the sprinters Rara said they will look at Francis Maneuri, Baso Kelesi, Kevin Pio, Adison Alfred, GeorgeManebona and Chris Walasi.

Meanwhile, Rara called on all athletes to help out in cleaning the field track at KGVI this weekend. — Charles KadamanaSOLOMON STAR.

The sports involved are athletics, beach volleyball, boxing, basketball, body building, bowls, cricket, football, golf, hockey, karate, netball, powerlifting, rugby 7s, rugby league, sailing, shooting, swimming, squash, softball, touch rugby, va’a, triathlon, taekwondo, table tennis, lawn tennis, indoor volleyball and weightlifting.

Chef de Mission-Team Fiji Cathy Wong said the participants had been urged to give their best and most importantly to enjoy the games.

“Our aim is to improve our current medal ranking and also to have a safe and enjoyable game,” she said.

Wong also reiterated that the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee (FASANOC) had been tirelessly doing its best to meet their $2m funding needed for the PNG meet.

“The lack of funds for preparation is our biggest challenge,” she said.

“This is the sole responsibility of the national sporting organisations and the challenge to meet our participation cost of $2,111,766.00 to take the team to PNG.

“The high cost of hiring sporting facilities for training and competition is also a major drawback.

Wong said FASANOC was doing its best to collect the much needed money for the game.

“FASANOC has embarked on a fundraiser lottery and Team Fiji Champions Program where it had appointed a marketing person to market the brand of Team Fiji.”

“We urge the public to come out and support your team to the Pacific Games by purchasing lottery tickets, or become a Team Fiji Champion.

The lottery will be drawn on February 27.

— Maciu Malo - Fiji Times

Fijian sprint star clocks 20 seconds in 200 metres sprint

PACIFIC GAMES

SOUTH Pacific Sprint King Banuve

Tabakaucoro was in top form at Fiji’s first Pacific Games trials at the ANZ Stadium on Saturday.

Banuve won the 200 meters event, clocking a time of 20.4 seconds. This is Banuve’s fastest time ever to be recorded

for the event.

Banuve also claimed the mens 100 metres event.

Athletics Fiji official Jo Rodan Junior said Banuve has already achieved the A grade qualifying time and is very focus to break records at the Pacific Games this year.

Other track athletes also looked impressive today.

They achieved B grade

qualifying times for the Pacific Games. Another trial will be held next weekend.

“The events like high jump and all other track events athletes have impressed the officials and are meeting the B grade qualifying time,” said Rodan Junior.

Vashneel PrasdFiji One

SOUTH Pacific sprint king Banuve Tabakaucoro of Fiji.

No room for Kari at OWF

WEIGHTLIFTING BY

KILA NAO

PNG golden boy Steven Kari is not wanted at the Oceania Weightlifting Federation (OWF).

This was reaffirmed in no uncertain terms by OWF mentor Paul Coffa at a press conference in Port Moresby yesterday.

PNG Weightlifting head Sir John Dawanicura chimed in to say that the decision to stay and train at his uncle and mentor Douglas Mea’s mango club was his own.

“It was his (Kari) own decision and it was never done by the Oceania Weightlifting Institute director Paul Coffa nor by PNG Weightlifting,” said Sir John. Coffa said at the media gathering yesterday that Kari wanted to stay back home and celebrate his mother’s birthday before he could travel to New Caledonia and there nothing was wrong with that.

“Steven (Kari) made his own decision and we respect that but the sad thing is that he will not be same Steven I have known for the past four years at OWI,” he added.

Alan developing future champions

BY KILA NAO VOLLEYBALL

THE sixth edition of the Nick and Bonnie Alan Volleyball Cup currently being played at Tatana Araira village is creating champions. The tournament has grown and established is a pathway for some best players in the game.

And the form of the Tatana representative team at the national championships can attest to that.

Tatana village is ranked second behind long-time Papua New Guinea champions Vabukori…only by a slender margin though.

Sponsor of the tournament,

Nick Alan has dedicated his services to support his

love and compassion for the youths from the village since 2010. Alan’s efforts has grown rapidly with nearby Motu Koita villages , both Hiri East and West and far Hula and Mekeo participating in the tournament.

Alan said: “My aim and dream is to get my village boys and girls especially the youths and the community

to create and build friendships that will last for a long time.”

“I salute the initiator and tournament chairman, George Daera, Dabu Anthon and their executives for the success of the tournament over the years and how they have run it very professionally and I believe they will continue the good work for

the next five years as well,” said Alan.

Alan has already committed K50, 000 for the last five and he has committed another K50, 00 for the next five years.

He is also appealing to Government agencies, business houses to support such events for the good of peace, harmony and trust through sports at the village level.

Taekwondo PNG to improve on skills

BY KILA NAO TAEKWONDO

TAEKWONDO PNG wants results and the only way to achieve this goal is to get its fighters to exposed regular competition to improve on their tactical skills and techniques.

They need to attend and participate at international events not to win but build self confidence and belief, said national assistant coach Edward Kassman.

The national federation has made arrangement for the ath-

The bottom line

letes to attend training camps and fights in Iran, Egypt Korea and other European countries…but they need funding for these events.

Kassman said: “We want to prepare well in advance and not leave it too late as it is PNG’s pride that is at stake for to dominate this combat sport at the Pacific Games.”

“There are a total of 18 gold medals on offer apart from the silver and bronze. The prospect of PNG winning six or more gold medals is certainly on offer,” he added.

A total of 26 athletes are

currently in training and the final selection of a 22 member squad will made on February 7 to prepare for the Games.

The squad will consist with eight males and eight females and six reserves.

The head coach is Australian-based Andreas Rutten with Kassman assisting.

Kassman said, three experts from the Taekwondo Peace Corps were sent on January 6, by the International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) to developing countries to train the national squad members.

“Training has being very

good especially with the female fighters in terms of sparring training while their counterparts are working on the tactical aspects of the art,” he said. “We won 12 silver and six bronze at the Mini Pacific Games in Wallis and Futuna in 2013 we can change these medals to Gold on home soil,” he said. Training squad one comprises of Bobby Willie (54kg), Max Kassman (58kg), Rainer Peni (63kg), Henry Ori (-68kg), Colland Kokin (80kg)male, Theresa Tona (53kg), Stephanie Kombo (62kg), Samantha Kassman.

Volleyball is the second most popular sport in the world today, exceeded only by soccer.

“He has lost his taste to compete and it is going to be very hard work for him to get back to peak compared to the high level he was getting back at the OWI where there is always discipline and self esteem,”

“He was like a real son to me and Lilly (my wife) and we cared for him a lot and natured him to glory in our short term,” he said.

“I am not bitter but I am disappointed with him and wish him all the best in the Pacific Games” said Coffa.

Sir John cleared speculations regarding Kari’s ethics was that he (Steven) was called couple of times to report to him and even meet with the Athletes Commission chairman, Alex Davani but he refused or otherwise did not front-up for this meetings.

“We want to get things over with and get him (Kari) back to the institute and train but he has decided to stay and that is up him,” he added.

TOURNAMENT sponsor Nick Alan serves to start the U21 grand-final, as tournament chairman George Daera looks on. Inset-Hula’s Eva Aunamahn and Wari Pala attempt to block a spike from a Wari Hebamo player. Hula won the U21 women’s title three sets to nil. Picture by MARK TALIA

TAEKWONDO training squad members, Raihab Loi and Rosemary Tona demonstrate thier skills while Coach Edward Kassman, Yu Jin Lee and other members look on.

Boxers in dead heat

BOXING

IT will be the last man standing that will represent Papua New Guinea in the boxing’s super heavyweight division in the forthcoming XV Pacific Games from July 4-19. With only one slot available it will be a rumble in the jungle for former Pukpuk rugby union player Billy Torea and former Kumul rugby league player Leo Kondai to prove themselves.

Those big hits and driving tackles on the paddock that both are renown for won’t count for much in this arena.

Both were named in the PNG boxing team yesterday after sterling performances at the 6th PNG Games last year and the national championships in Goroka last week.

PNG Boxing Union (PNGBU) president John Avira yesterday said that both showed the latitude and power to engage with positive prospects in the ring.

“This one division that PNG doesn’t make an impact on in the region but if both take on the build-up well that is planned, we may find a winner out of these two,” he said.

“There is only slot available and they both will given a chance like the others with bouts planned on the Gold Coast this month and further trials at the camp at Tabubil if needed,” he said.

Amongst the female team are the talented Kaore sisters, former PNG Palais rugby sevens player Debbie and former

elite sprinter Raphaela. Avira said the PNGBU has named a full-team plus reserves that will compete in all divisions from the 49kg to the 91kg+ for both male and females.

“From this squad only 15 will compete during the Pacific Games.

This will come down to several factors including improved performances over this short period, commitment and discipline,” he added.

“We want boxers who have that passion and pride to represent the country…these factors will be important towards who gets a shot,” he added.

He further said from the team itself the only two new faces that have emerged are Goroka-based Kondai and Robert Gabriel in heavyweight division.

Avira said the PNGBU has engaged Alan Nicholson Jnr from Queensland Boxing to coach the team.

“He (Alan) will take the boxers under his wing with our local trainers when the team heads down to the Gold Coast and later during the camp at Tabubil,” he added.

The PNG boxing team: Charlie Keama, Lui Magaiva, Jonathon Lawas, Beipu Noki, Thadeus Katua, Tony Oaike, Tom Boga, Andrew Aisaga, Robert Gabriel, Jonathon Keama, Lukas Wakore, Leo Kondai, Billy Torea (male), Philo Magaiva, Laizani Soma, Manuela Lamberth, Raphaela Kaore, Debbie Kaore, Christine Ikupu.

PNG paddlers step up in strong competition

OUTRIGGER CANOEING

THE Papua New Guinea men’s va’a team put on a positive performance at the recent 2015 Australian Outrigger Canoe Racing Association National Titles.

The event was staged from January 31 to February 1 at Lake Kawana on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.

PNG coach Michael Bai said this is the first international competition PNG has attended since the Mini Games in Wallis and Futuna.

“PNG was represented by PNG 1, a team selected specifically for 1500m and PNG 2, selected for 500mtr rac-

ing. Both teams however participated in both the 500 meters, and 1500 meters and then combined for the V12 (12 men) 500 meter sprint,” he said.

On Saturday PNG 1 and PNG 2 both qualified for the 500m finals, and PNG 2 finished third behind Moolooba and Sunshine Coast in the 500 meter sprints, while PNG 1 finished seventh.

On Sunday morning PNG 1 and 2 both entered the heats of the 1500m and this time PNG 2 qualified fourth for the finals, while PNG 2 finished ninth overall.

In the finals PNG 2 finished third

behind Moolooba and Sunshine Coast.

Later on Sunday afternoon both PNG teams combined to race the V12 500 meter sprint and won a final that race organizers described as one unlike any race they have ever seen before, he said.

“The PNG Men 5 of whom are still in the U19s category though small in stature were able to beat much bigger crews with many more years of canoe racing,” he added.

“PNG added a flavour of racing never seen before according to the AOCRA race organisers and other participating teams,” he said.

Heavy downpour stops game

RUGBY LEAGUE

BY BRIAN JEMEJEME

HEAVY down pour on Saturday stopped the Southern Leg challenge of the Coca -Cola Ipatas Cup to be played.

The McGregor Police Barracks oval at Moitaka 9 Mile outside Port Moresby which was the earmarked for the trials was heavily flooded leaving CCIC officials with no hope but to cancel the matches.

Coordinator James Ngune said they are now looking to go

straight into the competition challenge.

‘’Our plan for staging the trials have been shattered by the rain so we will go straight into the competition challenge,’’ he said.

He said 10 teams will represent Eastern end while the other 10 will represent the Western end.

Ngune said there will be two pools and after round robin matches in each pool, the two teams that lead in their respective pools will then be awarded the gold pass.

‘’Out of the two teams that

leads in each pool, we will work out their points difference and the team that has the better percentage will walk away with K10,000,’’he said.

“The paddler’s attitude on and off the water attracted many admirers throughout the Australian National Sprints weekend,” Bai added.

The great result is indicative of the combined efforts by the PNG Government and the PNG Olympic Committee through the G4G funding program, he said.

PNG men’s outrigger team is headed in the positive direction and though the team came back with great results, the coaching staff and the paddlers are very aware that this is only the first step of a long journey that started in August 2014 and needs to continue over the next few

months until July 2015 where the team hopes to once again make PNG proud, he said.

The team was sponsored by Pacific Towing Limited and Mounsou Limited who supplied their competition and travel uniforms.

The team also thanked the Sea Serpents of Maroochydore who allowed them to train on their canoes for free and the PNG community who turned out in big numbers to support the team.

Bai lastly paid tribute to the work put in by the High Performance Training Centre and all its management and staff.

PNG’S experienced pugilist Tom Boga will lead the team. Inset- (left) Former Kumul rugby league player Leo Kondai and former Pukpuk rugby union player Billy Torea vying for one slot in the super heavy- weight division.

The venue is yet to be confirmed...

RA ZOR EZRA RAZOR EZRA KICKS HIGH

Kyokushin karate on the return

FIFTEEN year-old Ezra Bobola is just under the radar for XV Paci fi c Games selection but will be sure to make an impression for the future.

Unwavering discipline and total commitment in the growingly popular Kyokushin karate martial art has shaped this talented teenager in more ways than he could ever comprehend.

After three years under astute head instructor of the Erima Dojo, Sempai Bernard Soari, Bobola has grasped what he started as a hobby to now be a pillar of his newfound character.

The young man from Morobe, Madang and Central Province’s is among a host of promising athletes that have taken on karate like a duck to water.

“It’s an innovative sport that impresses discipline and commitment and inspires you to want to learn more,” he said.

He said his instructor is hard task-master. “But I’m getting use to it as I know it will be rewarding at the end of the day,” he added.

It’s not hard to fi gure who his mentor is as he also include Sempai Sailas Piskaut and training partners Theophill Metta and Nathalie Soari who provide the imputes to strive for new heights. Bobola is a blue tip 7th dan belt holder and is in no hurry.

The grade 10 POMIS student competed at the 6th PNG Games with mixed results last year, but remains firm as he knows it is part of the learning curve.

Razor Ezra...Rising young talent

Ezra Bobola in training this week

“I want to be there one day to represent my country but I know and my Sempai (Soari) knows that it takes a lot more than a few sessions with the punching bag to get there,” he added. Bobola and his fellow members from Port Moresby and the newly established Morobe Dojo are currently preparing themselves for the first training seminar at the Socay Hall at Hohola from February 6-8 in Port Moresby.

FORMER PUKPUK VIES FOR BOXING SLOT... PAGE 55