NCC to be disbanded

THE National Control Centre (NCC) set up to manage the Covid-19 pandemic is to be disbanded by the end of the year, Prime Minister James Marape says.
“We are towards entrenching the pandemic response and recovery into the country’s health care system so the Health Department responds better to future pandemic and endemic crisis,” he said.
Towards this end, Marape said the NCC must acquit for all the money spent on operations this year as “we work to scale down operations progressively”.
Marape gave the directive to the NCC to acquit its expenses at a meeting on Thursday in Port Moresby.
He revealed in the meeting that the Government had remitted “K2million on average” to all the districts to assist the building of health care facilities to handle Covid-19.
“I know you have given reports, but I now want details. Let us get on with this. I want detailed acquittals to be done as soon as possible,” he said.
He also directed the involvement of the Auditor-General to spearhead the audit, assisted by the National Pandemic Response Controller Police Commissioner David Manning and the Health secretary Dr Osborne Liko.
Marape thanked Papua New Guineans for continually demanding for the report on the spending of Covid-19 funds which he said was good for transparency and accountability.
“No one taught us how to respond on this pandemic. We are on the job, adjusting and running as we go,” he said.
“Let us indicate how much money we have received, what we have spent, and in that context, you need to put in what needs to be done on a permanent basis, going forward into the future.”
Marape also acknowledged the financial support given by partner countries and agencies towards the handling of the pandemic crisis in PNG.