By PETER KORUGL
FORMER Lae city lord mayor Toffamo Mionzing is dead.
Mionzing, in his late 50s, died at the Angau Memorial General Hospital after a short illness last Saturday.
Relatives and friends in the city have formed a committee to organise his funeral service.
The late Mionzing was one of Morobe’s most prominent lawyers before he left the public service to enter politics.
He served as a law lecturer at the University of PNG, legal officer to the University of Technology and secretary to the Department of Morobe before he entered politics, later becoming a councillor.
He served as Lae city’s lord mayor until he was ousted in 2002.
“We are all shocked over the sudden passing away of the late Mionzing. He was a very good administrator during the 1980s when he served under the Utual Samana government as secretary,” Morobe administrator Manasupe Zurenuoc said yesterday.
“On behalf of the Department of Morobe and the public servants, I send my condolences to his family members.”
A spokesman for the committee, David Kepaka, told The National the committee wanted the funeral to be arranged for late next week to allow for all the late leader’s friends to attend it to pay their last respects.
Mr Kepaka said Morobe Governor Luther Wenge, however, had asked that the funeral service be held tomorrow and the body taken home for burial on Saturday.
“We can’t do that. This is not giving enough time to all his friends to pay their respects.
“The governor said he was committed to Parliament, which was debating the 2008 Budget and wanted to be there for the Opposition’s response,” Mr Kepaka said.
He said the change of plan by the governor did not go down well with the family and the organising committee.
“We may have to go ahead and plan for the funeral next week. If the governor wants to fit himself into the programme, he may do so,” Mr Kepaka said.