Fly-over is for a better capital city

 THE eviction of settlers in the National Capital District to make way for the K160 million Kookabara fly-over project highlights the dilemma faced by Governor Powes Parkop and his city administration in their efforts to modernise the capital city.

Settlers living on reserved land in the Port Moresby suburb of Erima were ordered by the National Court on Wednesday to vacate the area.

This piece of land is mar­ked as part of the fly-over project being undertaken by the National Capital District Commission (NCDC) and the State.

In February, the NCDC Physical Planning Board issued notices to the settlers to vacate the area within 40 days. They refused to move and obtained interim orders on March 7 restraining the NCDC from carrying out the eviction. 

The settlers argued that they had lived on the land for more than 20 years and some had started businesses there. 

They argued that the move by the NCDC to evict them was a breach of their constitutional rights.

However, their hopes of a reprieve were dashed this week when Justice Ere Kariko set aside the interim orders stopping their eviction, thereby allowing the NCDC to issue notices to demolish their homes near the Moitaka Wildlife sanctuary.

“They are illegally on the land,” Justice Kariko said in his ruling on Wednesday.

The substantive matter initiated by the settlers is still pending in the National Court but their chances of a final reprieve are rather slim.

Governor Parkop is adamant the fly-over project will proceed without further delays and disruptions by the disgruntled settlers.

His administration has offered the settlers compensation packages, which include six months rental payment of K1000 per week for temporary accommodation. 

As well, the settlers will get new and bigger allotments along the same road corridor and the NCDC will build houses for them and pay compensation for their losses.

The compensation package sounds reasonable, par­ticularly for people who have been living illegally on this reserved land.

It seems the settlers do not have a particularly strong case to justify their existence on this land and it would be wise of them to accept the compensation package and make way for the new development to proceed.

Their continued opposition to the eviction exercise will only prolong their agony and frustrate the NCDC’s plans to resolve the issue ahead of the project schedule.

It has been a juggling act for Parkop, who has been fair and reasonable in his treatment of the settlers, many of whom voted him into office in 2012 for a second term.

While Parkop is sympathetic to the their plight, he views the fly-over road project as crucial to Port Moresby’s future development and growth.

The capital city is preparing to host the 2015 Pacific Games followed by the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) summit in 2018 – two significant events that are bound to catapult the country’s image and reputation almost sky-high.

Both events are being staged in Port Moresby and the governor cannot afford to leave any stones unturned in his quest to prepare the host city.

It may be better to disappoint a few settlers so that the governor can bring smiles to the faces of most residents and visitors to the city.

The fly-over road project is expected to change the face of Port Moresby and make it the envy of the Pacific Islands region. 

Major road and infrastructure projects taking place in the NCD will lift the city’s image considerably.

Coupled with that is the start of production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) later this year, which is set to significantly boost Papua New Guinea’s economy. 

As the politicians like to say, money will no longer be an issue as the country’s GDP (gross domestic product) is forecast to double and even triple over the next few years.

Indeed, Governor Parkop wants to ensure that Port Moresby fully benefits from the spin-off impact of the LNG and other major developments that are coming on stream in the near future.