ENB set to vote for councillors

MORE than 18,000 voters in 27 council wards in East New Britain will go to the polls for the second time to elect their councillors.
This is scheduled to get underway later this month.
The elections would include the election of a new local level government president for the Balanataman LLG in the Rabaul district following the death of the president last October.
Writs for the by-elections would be issued in Kokopo this week which would open nominations for the 27 council wards a
president open seat immediately.
The wards in 11 local level governments became vacant following resignations from office by elected office holders, deaths and decisions of the Court of Disputed returns on petitions filed by losing candidates.
The seats vacant in the constituencies of Balanataman LLG are for the president’s position four council wards in the Rabaul Urban LLG, one vacant seat in the Raluana LLG, two seats in the Duke of York LLG,
two in the Bitapaka LLG, five vacant seats in the Toma-Vunadidir LLG, four seats in the Livuan-Reimber LLG, two in the Lassul-Baining LLG and another two vacant seats council seats.
In the Pomio district, there is one vacant seat, one in the
Sinivit LLG, West-Pomio Mamusi and the Central Inland Pomio LLG.
Provincial returning officer, Terence Hetinu, said voters in the Balanataman LLG would be electing their new president following the death of the late John Topeono last October.
People from the other 10 LLGs would be electing their new ward councillors.
He said they expected all 18,432 voters whose names are in the 2007 common roll to cast their votes in the by-elections.