A stable year but have we improved

 As the final curtain falls on 2013, Papua New Guineans will look back on a year that offered many good points and some worrying issues. 

Firstly, this may not be thought of as significant but the year under the O’Neill government was one of stability. 

There were no pushes for regime change in mid-term that has come to characterise Papua New Guinea politics. This was mainly be­cause of the government controlling around 90 per cent of Parliament. 

Business, especially in Port Moresby and Lae continued to prosper. 

Infrastructure and econo­mic change in these two cities seems to be moving at a quicker rate than the rest of the country but then again these are the two recognised hubs of PNG. 

On a political theme, this year more than others in recent memory would have to go down as the least eventful and that played a big role in maintaining the status quo. 

Perhaps unlike previous years there was more trust and acceptance and less dissension in the ranks. 

Opposition leader Belden Namah and his deputy Sam Basil led a dwindling group of MPs who tried to form a voice to keep the government in check, but it was mostly ineffective. 

For all the changes and improvements to the country in terms of legislation and governance that was trumpeted the country was still plagued by the usual negatives that have come to be expected year in year out. 

Corruption on a grand scale continued to steal the headlines. 

The mismanagement and overspending of public funds on the Lae city road project was a case in point. 

Millions of kina of public money had been used on this project but for a return that was not commensurate with the work done. 

One could say that for nearly every major state-funded project there would have been some questionable action or practice or decision that deserved some kind of inquiry. 

There were other instances of rorting and abuse that were uncovered and expo­sed however we are yet to see one successful prosecution. 

Task Force Sweep, under Sam Koim, targeted departments and individuals in investigations and made recommendations for criminal charges to be laid. To date the only individuals that have had to answer for the abuse of funds (K10 million) in a court, was businessman Eremas Wartovo and Pomio MP Paul Tiensten but these two men were investigated starting in 2012. The Task Force Sweep’s strike rate although well intentioned has been poor. 

The other issues that weigh­ed in were the abuse of Special Agricultural Business Leases (SABLs). The blatant misuse of this license by companies to develop large tracts of indigenous land caused a furore among landowners. 

The report by a commission of inquiry into the dealings of the state and the developers is yet to be released. But if we thought the people were being victimised, their attitudes in other areas did not give us much comfort. 

The bastardised tradition of compensation caused many headaches and unnecessary delays in delivery of crucial services to the people themselves. Public roads that encroa­ch on private land or that were damaged by the elements was cause for demanding from the state. Although as illogical as this may sound the people along parts of the Highlands Highway have a sense of entitlement when it comes to benefitting from the state for damage to state property (roads) by natural or man-made means. 

Two other topics of interest that cropped up over the course of 2013 were those of the Manus Detention Centre for asylum seekers to Australia and deep sea mining. 

2013 was a year of promise but it was also a year of missed opportunities.