By JAMES KILA
SIX months after last year’s general elections have been completed, some individuals and groups in Goroka claim they are still owed money by the Electoral Commission (EC) for the services they rendered.
These people have warned of trouble if they are not paid their outstanding payments.
During a meeting early this week most of the service providers, including transport operators, mothers’ groups who provided catering and other individuals questioned why the EC was taking too long to process their payments.
They said the success of the elections was credited to everyone, including them but they felt they were let down.
Their demands could not be heard because EHP election manager Alwynn Jimmy was not in Goroka.
“Since the general elections ended last year, we had not seen the face of the EHP election manager in Goroka and so far he had not come out clear as to whether we are receiving our payments or not,” one service provider said.
They said they did not want to disclose their names or the amount they are to be paid for fear of repercussions.
A spokesman said they were told last week by an accountant employed by the PNGEC in Goroka that the commission’s accounts for this year would be officially opened tomorrow and by then payments would be made.
A PMV operator who provided his buses to transport election officials said he had wasted so much money to pay for fuel to transport the counting officials to and from Henganofi.
He said he had to provide transport to counting officials on shifts all the way from Henganofi to Goroka because lodges and people who had provided housing to the election officials in previous elections did not want election officials to reside in their places because of past experiences of non-payments.