Govt warned of ‘secret’ deals

The National Main Stories

THE Government has been warned to stop making “secret” deals with international financial agencies in regards to the repayments of existing external loans.
The warning from the People’s National Congress Party leader Peter O’Neill, the former prime minister, in his latest attack on the Government led by his successor James Marape on how it was managing the economy.
O’Neill claimed that the Treasury Department had “begged the Paris Club of creditor nations to suspend (PNG’s) debt service obligations”.
Attempts made yesterday to get a comment from Marape’s office were unsuccessful.
The Paris Club is a group of officials from major creditor countries whose role is to find co-ordinated and sustainable solutions to the payment difficulties experienced by debtor countries.
O’Neill said “the secret deal places the PNG economy in the category of desperate failing economies and will cost the country as it further gives away sovereignty to foreign financial directors”.
He added that PNG could face “a further credit ratings downgrade and higher interest rates”.
“This is the most disastrous course of action we could ever have imagined this Government taking, and is done so with the permission of James Marape who does not realise the implications of placing the economy under foreign control,” O’Neill said.
“The secret Paris Club deal prevents borrowing of any external commercial debt, and could force PNG to repay or refinance all commercial debt.
“This latest failure is the result of pressure from the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and an undisclosed condition imposed to refinance the dubious billion kina loan last year under the Australian Export Finance Agreement,” he said.
“Papua New Guinea is now in the deepest mess in our history.
“Never before has any of our successive governments ever defaulted on debt, or sought suspension as has happened now.”
O’Neill said Marape had promised no more borrowing, then back-flipped well before the state of emergency recession and said he would only borrow at the cheapest rates.
“(But) his latest bond issue was at 13 per cent interest rate after he forced the central bank to breach its own Act,” O’Neill said.
“Marape has made BSP take up hundreds of millions of long-term bonds that is now hindering lending to PNG citizens and businesses, and he also bullied the superfunds to take up government bonds.
“This government has raided every last toea from our local financial institutions and now there is nothing left to recover from the billions of kina in debt imposed on the economy by the reckless SOE.”
He said since the Marape-led Government was formed a year ago, it “has lowered growth projections, with PNG now falling into a deep recession with unemployment rising sharply”.

14 comments

  • Krystal…PO & MJ were and are still brothers so whatever problems they created together has to be solved together. PO cannot blame MJ and MJ cannot blame PO. We are not cowards but we are a people with brains!

  • PO must now concentrate on defend himself in court from corruption charges and there are many charges still to come. He put this country in this financial mass when he ran this country with his dictatorial style for 8 year. Now he is attempting to deflect the attention. We all know his style. He is not new to us Papua New Guineans.

  • Peter O’Neil,s borowings had made a lot of impact or changed the shape of this country in terms of infrastructure developments and impacted projects,
    If Peter O’Neil has created the mess, why didn’t Hon J Marabe allowed Peter to fix his own mess rather than grabbing his powers from Peter O’Neil? Wether you like it or not PM JMarabe gets the blame because he is the current Prime Minister of the Nation of PNG. Current PM JMarabe is yet to show case his true, true leadership colours to the people of PNG.TOKOK planty na nogat action long wanem?? As leaders or Parliamentarians MP,s have the right view their opinions wether good or bad to lead this country to prosperity.
    some comments posted by general public are annoying and meaningless and from my point of view is I would blame the PM advisors for ill advising Hon JMarabe for not considering the effects that would affect our Nation in the years to come.

  • Peter O’Neill must really have big balls to come and smear the current government. Most of the current MPs in the government were in fact in short O’Neill’s government and they know what deals they have done for the benefit of PNG and for the benefit of their own account. To have the audacity to come forward and throw dirt at his former finance minister shows that he needs something to divert attention. Just send him to Bomana.

  • JM is in-charge. All bucks stop with him. He has to show PNG what he can do and stop scapegoating PO. JM took the job of PM because he thought he could do a better job. Now prove it.

  • Please don’t pass the buck around and shifting the blame on each. You twos PO/JM with other members know this generator deals while you were in power. Now you are warning about ” secret ” deal whose fault is this. Can they justified their innocent before the court. As this saga deal unfold with the days to come, We the victimized 8 million PNGuineans wants to know this CORRUPTED DEALS. We are tired of reading and listening to this crock members. Our good former politicians who were in power from the Colonial till Independence periods were very wise in decision making. They were very conscious with the welfare of their people who elected them, Politicians now days they are Power hungry and Money Conscious. My people are suffering in pain and my students in school are not properly subsided their promised TFF. Tax payers money are being used in a bias and nepotism way without tangle development. Please can the so called MPs stop these ”big maus rokrok sage deal. How can we take back PNG when our MPs are doing corrupted practices. My simple advised to all MPs is in order to take back PNG, You must take back your families first. Let justice rules in this saga deal..

  • He (PO) should be moved to the opposition side of the Parliament house asap. He is a wolf in the Govt side. He will try his best to grab power from Marape as soon as an opportunity arises just like he did to Michael Somare some years back. He uses other MP’s for his gains. Beldan Nama was one of those. Now Nama is trying to help him again. Beldan Nama don’t make the same mistake. You (Nama) were a laughing stock when PO dumped you some years back.

  • Shame on all of them, they all were involved in secrete deals during his tenure as PM running down the country so bad, the whole country is digging it further down unless drastic measures are adapted to climb up.
    PMJM, it’s your turn to bring png back, enough of boasting and action it. If you cannot then let someone else take up that role and I know a few capable leaders who can.

  • It seems like the MPs are throwing stones to each other now and who will calm this situation down. Can we have justice takes it course now and solve this problem??? The judges, police and witnesses go forward and solve this problem once and for all. Lets takes this year 2020 as a time of problem solving. if it means someone is guilty and needs to be sentences to prison than let it be so because you reap what you have sow. If we cannot sort out this problem now then we will be throwing stones to each other till the end come.

  • O’Neil was responsible for running down PNG with all the unnecessary loans in the pretext of development. Obtaining cuts from contractors from his continous borrowings. Now he is trying to play a blame game and call himself Mr. Perfect. Gross mismanagement of funds. People of Ialibu Pangia need him most at this point in time. All PNC members should follow William Powi’s move and oppose corrupt regimes.

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