Academic praises govt for 2013 budget

By ZACHERY PER
A UNIVERSITY of Goroka academic has described the 2013 Budget as one the country has been waiting for the past 37 years.
Political scientist and constitutionalist Dr Sam Kari said Papua New Guinea had waited long enough for a budget that focused on economic empowerment of ordinary citizens and growth of rural
economy.
Kari said he felt compelled to comment on the budget as a concerned citizen after learning that the money plan reflected some of the core issues he raised in two of his
books.
“To allocate a substantial amount of money to economic empowerment of Papua New Guineans is uniquely historical since the independence,” he said.
He said the economy had been controlled by foreigners, although the founding fathers of the nation who were part of the Constitutional Planning Committee members proposed that Papua New Guineans should own 51%  of the economy.
“However, this has been the opposite for the past 37 years until the 2013 budget, which is focused on giving greater economic powers to ordinary citizens.”
“The government is making history to fulfil dreams of our fathers who wrote the Constitution,” Kari said.
He commended Treasurer Don Polye, Finance Minister James Marape, Trade and Industry Minister Richard Maru, National Planning Minister Charles Abel and Prime Minister Peter O’Neill for coming up with a budget that “belonged to ordinary citizens”.
“The budget is focused at reviving and re-activating reserved economic activities which past governments failed to actively promote.
 “It is good news for the government to promote reserved business activities for ordinary
citizens.”
Kari said it was the first time for the government to allocate so much money to districts and provinces, where the bulk of the people were.
Kari’s two books, Decolonisation and the Birth of Papua New Guinea’s Constitution 1959 – 1975 with the Five National Goals and Directive Principles’ and ‘PNG’s Management, Governance, Debates, Policies 1975 – 2002’ talk about Papua New Guineans owning 50% of the economy.
He said PNG needed stability, legislation and responsive and vigilant public servants to translate these into the expected outcomes.