Fix Western Highlands roads

MOST road networks in Western Highlands need proper upgrading and maintenance to ease people’s daily struggles.
The roads need urgent maintenance because people need them.
Many people are subsistence farmers and they need better roads to come to the market.
The Western Highlands government should make funding available to maintain all roads in the districts and Mt Hagen city.
Roads are a vital service which connects people to the rest of the province.
I call on Western Highlands Governor Paias Wingti to focus on building more roads and maintain the existing ones.
Look at the roads in Mt Hagen, Tambul-Nebilyer, Dei and Mul-Baiyer, most are in worst conditions and are impassable.
What is the provincial government doing with the provincial budgets which are meant to be used on roads?
One of these roads is the Balg-Baisu road which is in the worst state but nothing is done.
Hagen MP William Duma did his part to fund maintenance twice.
Duma funded the maintenance again last week.
The Balg-Baisu road is the only road used by a major jail in the country so the provincial government should take the lead to fix it.
People need better roads to travel to access development services.
I do not know why the provincial government keeps turning a blind eye on that.
I thank Hagen MP Duma for injecting so much money on the Balg-Baisu road.
If Duma can do it then why can’t the provincial government do the same?
If leaders can prioritise road, changes can easily reach the people.
Why do we call on the people to change when we as mandated leaders do not play our part?
In Western Highlands, people have the heart to venture into agriculture and focus on the small to medium enterprises sector but poor road conditions are becoming an obstacle.
There are many roads in the province that need maintenance.
I call on Wingti and his administration to spend money on fixing roads in the province.

Wai Rapa,
President,
Mt Hagen Rural LLG