Daughter to contest seat

Reports by MALUM NALU

East Sepik Governor and founding prime minister Sir Michael Somare has given his blessing to his daughter Dulciana Somare-Brash to contest  the seat he has held for the last 49 years.
He made the announcement at a fundraising reception he hosted for Dulciana in Port Moresby on Wednesday night, which was attended by friends and supporters, including former Moresby-South MP Dame Carol Kidu, her Pangu Pati leader and Bulolo MP Sam Basil, People’s Movement for Change leader and Northern Governor Gary Juffa and National Party leader and Sinasina-Yongomugl MP Kerenga Kua.
Sir Michael, the founder of Pangu Pati under which Dulciana is standing, said he may be a member of National Alliance now but gave his blessing to her and Pangu.
She is currently the policy adviser for Pangu, something that Sir Michael alluded to, saying that people should support parties with “good policies”.
“I have been in politics too long, parties too long, but I’m thankful to my people in East Sepik,” Sir Michael said.
“Never once did they drop me.”
Sir Michael said for Pangu to be successful, both in East Sepik to be contested by Dulciana and the rest of the country, “you have to come up with good policies”.
“It is the policies that make a good government. If you have fragmented ideas, you won’t make a good government,” he said.
“You have one country, Papua New Guinea – stand for it and make it work.
“We should support parties with good policies, not fragmented groups that come together.”
Dulciana said national unity, which her father spoke about, was important.