GOOD morning to our readers around the globe. We wish you all a great weekend and hope you have the chance to turn your back on the hassles of the working week. Go smell the frangipani.
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MEMBERS of Parliament have in the past been quick to complain if they have felt that the courts have been trespassing on their rights as elected representatives of the people. In the same way, the findings of our courts and the judges that preside over them are now – and must remain in future – the provenance of a judicial system free from political interference.
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THE mental vacuity of some of our youth was starkly demonstrated this week when a gang of young thugs dug a ditch across the road linking Baisu prison with the outside world. Why? Well, it appears they were “frustrated” by the state of the road. There’s no record of whether their trench digging efforts increased or diminished their frustration.
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IF they could summon the energy and sense of purpose necessary to carve up the road, they could just as easily have repaired the vital link. And where were the local councillors, the village big men or the members of the House? Did none of them make any attempt to stop the vital road link being damaged?
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ALMOST half a billion kina in taxes is reportedly flowing into PNG’s reserves this year; it makes us wonder where our country would be without this resource-led bonanza.
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WE also wonder just how much of our national resource benefits has been hived-off into the pockets of the greedy few. The amount of money generated over the past three decades has been huge, but the benefits to the people have been proportionately few. Imagine where PNG could be today if government and public service honesty had been paramount.
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AND now, as promised, the new Quiz question for our clever readers. In what year was the law amended to permit the indigenous people of Papua and New Guinea to drink alcohol and can you name a prominent figure who fought bitterly against the move? Answers to DeeNesenolis@hotmail.com by this coming Thursday. Cheers!
– Dee Nesenolis