Irresponsible admin must pay: Leaders

VILLAGE leaders from Menyamya are planning to contribute and pursue legal action against the district administration for being complacent and irresponsible.
They recently had a gathering at 10-Mile and Two-Mile areas in Lae to raise the funds.
At separate meetings last Wednesday night, the Menyamya community said that they had been concerned that no Government authority had taken the reports of the outbreak seriously, adding that relevant authorities had dragged their feet.
Their move stems from the inability of the administration to move in drugs and specialist medical team and serve primary health care to the dysentery and flu victims.
Community leader Solomon Peter, from Kwaplalim, said at the 10-Mile meeting that MP Benjamin Philip and the district administration should bear the responsibility for neglecting to fund and sustain basic health services.
“We cannot sit idle to see our family members and relatives die before our eyes like this.
“Failure of the Government to provide basic services had cost many lives,” Mr Peter said.
Most of the villages do not have access road.
The joint district priorities and budget planning committee has exhausted all funds to rehabilitate the worst road section between Watut and Aseki borders to Menyamya station.
He said if the district had made some funds available, it could have moved earlier to contain the situation.
“Due to  poor administration, nothing constructive had been set in place.
“That is why many people had fallen victims to the epidemic,” Mr Peter said.
Meanwhile, Bulolo MP Sam Basil has blamed the Health Department for not setting in place effective health delivery systems for the rural areas.
He said: “We talk about plans and drafting plans” and all the while, people are dying.
“When are we going to implement that plan?”   
Mr Basil said the Somare-Temu Government had the audacity to boast of “so much money with lots of trust accounts and yet we could not respond swiftly to attend to those who were suffering”.