Gifts given to Madang crash villagers

By JAYNE SAFIHAO
TWO months after the fatal Airlines PNG crash in Marakum village on the Raicoast of Madang, haunting memories of the mangled and charred remains of the plane and bodies remain fresh in the minds of locals.
Yesterday, Accident and Investigation Commission chief executive officer David Inau personally thanked and delivered an undisclosed amount in three envelopes for the villages of Marakum, Rimba and Aruom villages, along with K400 worth of foodstuff.
Bernadette Bubum, the woman responsible for sheltering and “offering a warm cup of coffee with clothes” to the three survivors, said she was more than grateful to the commission.
“These things are the fruit of the commitment made by Inau and his team of investigators who came here and took time to talk to us,” she said.
She stressed that the villagers were made aware that it was not normal for the commission to pay compensation.
She said there was an organised group in place headed by her husband, Richard, who had earlier insisted on getting rid of Raibus Security, on security arrangements in guarding the crash site.
There are now individuals from those three villages who guard the crash site.
Robert Mangai, one of the spokesmen who came with Bernadette, said there were issues of environmental damage that had yet to be discussed with Airlines PNG.
To date no payment for the help they gave has been made to the villagers but it is believed talks are ongoing.