Contractor issues affecting Fisheries Authority’s move to new office

PROBLEMS with contractors have stalled the National Fisheries Authority (NFA) staff from moving to a new office, acting managing director Justin Ilakini says.
NFA had bought a property from the Bank South Pacific (BSP) Financial Group Ltd and was supposed to move into the new location this month.
“We had a seven-month delay because of problems with contractors,” Ilakini told The National.
BSP sold the property through a legal tender process.
The NFA had signed a deal with the bank to buy the property in July 2016, but the delay in processing the purchase was due to financial issues.
The authority could not disclose the purchase price.
Former managing director John Kasu had said the NFA’s operations had been expanding over the years, making it necessary to find more office space.
“The authority has been trying its best to acquire land to build its own office,” he said.
The NFA has been renting offices in Downtown Port Moresby.
Kasu said the Public Money Management Regularisation Act (2017) which required all state-owned enterprises to pay a certain portion of their revenue to the State was a cause for the delay in buying the property.