Golpa people win bid for judicial review

 
by LARRY ANDREW
GROUPS claiming land ownership of the Wafi Golpu gold project site in Bulolo district, Morobe, have been granted leave to seek a judicial review of the NEC’s decision to disband the Special Lands Title Commission hearing.
The first three plaintiffs were Thomas Nen as representative of Babwaf Clan, Piu Incorporated Land Group along and 11 other claimants in the Special Land Title Commission hearing into the Wafi Golpu Mine project Land dispute.
The feud has been running for more than 10 years and had gone from land courts to the district courts with a lot of disputes which, at times, had turned violent.
After more than five years of calls for a Lands Title Commission, the government appointed a special one chaired by Lawrence Titimur and members Richard Cherake and Robert Irung last year.
Before it could complete its hearings, it was disbanded by Lands minister then John Pundari.
Justice Manuhu’s ruling now allows for the landowners challenge in court that there was “breach of natural justice and unreasonableness on the part of the relevant minister that sponsored the submission to disband the Commission.”