Govt blamed for poor road conditions

THE Government and the leaders of PNG are to blame for all the road accidents in the country, Kurumbakari Limited senior project and administration officer Chris Sari Aizuwe said.
Mr Aizuwe said this when commenting on the bad state of the Ramu-Madang Highway.
“They (Governemnt) have failed the people, they have failed to deliver.
“The people deserve better roads, health facilities and schools, given the country’s abundance in natural resources.
“The Minister (Don Polye) should not pass the buck but accept the fact that they should also accept the blame for not doing enough to ensure the roads in the country are safe to users,” he said.
Minister for Works and Transport Don Poyle told The National on Monday that he could not maintain the country’s roads with the K30 million allocated to him.
Mr Poyle said he would need K300 million in order to make the roads safe.
The bitumen is falling apart and huge crater like potholes are emerging along the road because of traffic volume growing due to the huge development projects, Mr Aizuwe said.
“The National Government and the Department of Works must immediately repair the highway to avoid another tragedy, like the two-bus collision that killed 43 people on Jan 13,” he said.
“Apart from the ordinary commuters, the highway serves the huge Ramu Agro Industries, the Kainantu gold mine, the Yandera copper mine, and the Ramu Nickel and Cobalt mine in the Madang province.
“The road is also the only access into Madang, linking Lae and the Highlands provinces where the huge betelnut trading is the main informal sector business of the people,” Mr Aizuwe said.