| Sports |
Success or failure
Has the six-month
state of emergency in the Southern Highlands province accomplished
its goals
By ANDREW ALPHONSE
IT is six months now for the state of emergency operations in the
Southern Highlands Province, after the National Parliament
unanimously voted to declare it last August. Deputy Prime Minister
Don Polye on 15 Dec 2006, told a jam-packed Momei oval crowd in
Mendi the National Government’s cause for the SoE. Mr Polye blamed
poor governance, maladministration, gross misuse and theft of
public funds, false claims, free cash handouts, dysfunctional
provincial public service machinery perpetuated by escalating law
and order problems as the consequences for the SoE.
He said the province being home to vast of the country’s lucrative
hydro carbon projects like Gobe, Kutubu, Moran and Hides oil and
gas fields is rich as the National Government dispenses millions
of kina into the provincial government coffers in its annual
budgets. However, he said forlornly over the years, there have
never been any benchmark developments and infrastructures
constructed to showcase for its richness as corruption and
maladministration take its toll.
With the SoE, the National Government subsequently sidelined the
provincial government of incumbent Governor Hami Yawari while then
provincial administrator Brian Pebo was replaced by William Powi.
Yawari who was a lone voice against the SoE votes in the
Parliament is defiantly seeking legal re-address over the issue.
Yawari has also called on the National Government to immediately
withdraw the SoE, claiming that people are tormented as services
no longer trickle down to them like in his reign while huge amount
of public funds are wasted on the SoE operations.
Meanwhile, Inter Government Relations Minister and Wabag MP Sam
Abal took over the reigns as care-taker governor under his
ministry. The National Executive Council also appointed then
deputy police commissioner (operations) Gari Baki as controller to
spearhead the SoE operations. Mr Baki (now appointed as police
commissioner) is well versed with the situation in the province
and wasted no time in issuing 25 emergency orders.
One is the voluntary surrender of all illegal firearms in an
amnesty period. About 800 security personnel including police, PNG
Defense Force and Correctional Services officers were deployed
into the province by mid August to begin the operations. Mr Baki
outlined three main areas the security forces would target in
their operations. This included ensuring smooth transition and
reviving of defunct provincial and district administrations,
working with the fraud squad in targeting issues of financial
mismanagements that has weakened government administration and
service delivery and carrying out awareness of good governance.
Meanwhile, Baki and Powi announced new acting positions in the
public servants appointed in an effort to overhaul unqualified
people and political cronies appointed in the provincial
administration and districts by the previous administration. The
discrepancies at the provincial government payroll system was
rectified where several ‘ghost names’ were identified and removed.
By October, the security forces re-couped 32 government houses in
Mendi town that have been illegally seized and occupied by locals.
About 24 provincial government vehicles illegally in the hands of
political cronies were also seized and impounded at the Agiru
Centre. Similar operations were extended to the eight districts.
In the months that followed, several high powered weapons and home
made guns were surrendered while a compulsory community service
was imposed province-wide for the clean up of the main towns and
government outstations. The Parliament further extended the SoE
period by another two months after the original date lapsed on
October. The police National Fraud and Anti-Corruption unit
investigating corruption and theft of public funds in the
provincial administration so far arrested 15 senior public
servants and politicians. However, team leader and senior
detective inspector Timothy Gitua said there is still ‘massive
work’ needed to be done in weeding out corruption and rampant
theft of public funds in the provincial administration.
There have been many positive signs of the SoE apart from two
incidents involving drunkard policemen clashing with Ialibu
secondary school students on Oct 24 and the attack on senior
police officer Benson Osil at Munhiu station in Mendi by PNGDF
troops, according to Catholic bishop of Mendi Stephen Reichert.
Bishop Stephen said generally 99 % of population in the province
is embracing the SoE and request for its extension to until after
the 2007 National Elections. Mr Abal said that would only be
possible if the Members of Parliament vote for the extension in
the Feb 22 Parliament session.
However, the SoE operations have also come under public scrutiny
by some leaders. Tari mayor George Tagobe told Mr Abal and Powi
during a visit to Tari on Feb 09 that the SoE has been a total
failure and waste of public funds. Mr Tagobe said despite being in
operation for six months now, the SoE has failed to achieve its
originally set aims and objectives.
He said there have never been any major restoration activities of
defunct basic government services as promised prompting concern to
the people. He added that one main target was to weed out
corruption and making appointments on merits in the provincial
administration’s public service machinery.
However, Mr Tagobe said people have already lost hope after
witnessing that the same old officers implicated in the
mismanagement or maladministration of public funds have been
re-appointed to certain positions in the current acting
appointments.
“Generally, people have given up hope after seeing the repetition
of the past administration where political cronies and wantoks
have been appointed to strategic positions,” Mr Tagobe said.
Mr Abal agreed that while not much in terms of service delivery
and restoration program has been done, he said timing was a factor
and all activities can not be accomplished in only six months,
adding that there was a need for the SoE extension. He said for
appointments, it was important that the current acting
appointments be allowed to do their duties until after the 2007
National Elections when a new provincial government can revoke the
appointments and make changes if need be, adding that it was
essential for ‘administration to be in place’ before ‘restoration
program begins’. Meanwhile, there are fears that the SoE might not
be extended to until after the elections after Parliament failed
this week to muster the 55 required votes.
 
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