Job losses in sector a trait of Marape-led Govt: Pruaitch

The National National

JOB losses in the resource sector has been the hallmark of the Marape-led Government, says Aitape-Lumi MP Patrick Pruaitch.
He said within weeks of coming into office, hundreds of jobs were lost in the Papua LNG project in Port Moresby and Gulf because of “uncertainty over the Government response to its concluded Papua LNG agreement”.
“The joint venture led by Total Oil also immediately disbanded the technical team it had gathered in Singapore to conduct Front End Engineering and Design studies on its Elk-Antelope gas fields in Gulf,” he said.
“This is the way the Government kicked off interaction with key private sector investors. In the months that followed, some 5,000 jobs were shed by the Papua LNG, P’nyang and the Wafi-Golpu copper-gold joint venture.
“An additional 3,600 Porgera mine workers were retrenched following the closure of the gold mine at the end of April.
“As the resource sector contracted, an increase in the government’s log export levy, from 30 to 50 per cent, saw forestry sector companies shed an additional 8,000 jobs and shut down many operations.”

17 comments

  • Yet some gullible Papua New Guineans are still blind to see the reality of Marape’s incompetency to lead Papua New Guinea. Worst PM in the history of PNG.

  • The much anticipated and publicized Resources Laws have been amended and passed by the National Parliament, but we are yet to see our stalled major projects taking off the ground.
    Do these ‘by-laws’ attractive to the resource developers? When will these projects take off the ground? How long do we (affected employees – both COVID-19 pandemic & Porgera Mining closure) have to suffer for the better future (of PNG)?
    Remember PNG is still a developing country and we will not continue to borrow to fund the operational budget items such as salaries and wages for public servants, etc.. Our economy needs urgent recovery from the pandemic impact.

  • These are unprecedented times that the world is going through. Across every economy in the world today, unemployment levels have increased because of COVID-19, yet the opposition is of the view that employment levels have dropped in PNG is solely due to the actions of current government of PMJM.

  • PP you seem to forget what was the main cause of all these job loss.
    Was it not COVID-19 affecting the world? Or was PMJM’s doing?
    Come on Pruaitch, you know that very well.
    You’ve been there in the government since yester years. You know PMJM is cleaning the mess up.
    He also stated clearly in the beginning that we will all suffer for a short term gain for a better future.
    Not even one year yet and we are already crying!

  • This cannot score him points to make him feel concerned. The issue of unemployment should be addressed in policy then on events.

  • Narrow minded politicians like PP are like the farmer that ate all the produce and never kept seeds for the next season, your bad dreams will soon find you as your days numbered are being fast tracked.

  • Watching this categorical political censure becomes exasperating. There seems to be a grit to discount intellectuals who are concerned about their country like PMJM.

    PP knew it well so as other opposition MPs. The rise in the number of unemployed workers precisely due to COVID-19 is substantively larger than the increase due to the Great recession. There is no doubt COVID-19 is causing great economic damage all round the World and Papua New Guinea is part of that dismemberment.

    Based on this, the view of 95% of Papua New Guineans are precisely secure with PMJM.

    Enoch MacTeine Agyonga
    Giriu Village
    Chuave Chimbu Province

  • Just all rubbish. An excuse to discredit the Marape government. Come on, lets me real. How do you expect to have miracles overnight when new laws were passed in less than a month. It is just 18months and some of us expected things to happen just like that.

  • Partick Pruaitch electrate blo you aitape lumi nogat senis ya please, ol people blo you still stap wankain osem papa tumbuna blo youpla…wanem taim Bai you senesim aitape lumi….maski pretend osem you wanpla gutpla saveman, na paipap tumas,…noken kamap osem empty drum unless u wokim hanmak pinis. Rot go lo aitape town wankain osem rot go garden, aitape town luk osem colonial station…..sem pain lo me tokim sampla moa so mi bai stop lo hia…only GOD knows what had happened you he only will balance that.

  • Aitape-Lumi MP Patrick Pruaitch sounds grown-up fool. Take a look at what he in Aitape-Lumi during his term. PP did nothing for PNG though he held senior portfolios in the past governments. There is nothing to show for and he keeps talking as if he has what it takes to be a leader. Fool keeps fooling his fool class.

  • Effect of COVID-19 on unemployment in 2020.
    According to The Guardian report: Australian loss 29,500 jobs in 2020
    According to HRM Asia: Japan lost more than 63,000 jobs and Philippines loss over 7.3 million jobs as a result of COVID-19 in 2020.
    According to the Diplomat News: Many as 27 million urban workers has loss job in China in 2020 due to COVID-19.

    PNG Trade Union Congress has reported in July 2020: that more than 10, 000 jobs in the Private Sector were lost has a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The major cause of Job Loss in PNG and the world in 2020 is the result of the effect of COVID-19 on the decisions of the governments. This were tough and unpredictable months, the government has to reach immediately to save this country from the effect of the pandemic (periods where life of citizens were considered more important than the economy). That is what any responsible government would do in such a time, and that’s what PMJM and his government has done.

    We cannot deny the fact that some job loss in the resource sector was the result of the government’s change in Policy, a change that the currently government deemed is in the best interest of this country in the long run. The loss of jobs in the mining sector was the result of BNL not agreeing with the government’s for PNG to retain around 50% of the economic benefits from the sale of the minerals. The current government saw that past % of economic benefit sharing was not favorable to PNG (PNG was on the losing). The mining companies have been legally robbing PNG in broad day light for the past 40 plus years (commencing with Panguna) , but nobody wanted to talk about it, politicians were made quite somehow (you know the magic wand used here).

    While we are still arguing and politicians going on with their politics and pointing fingers at each other, positions in the mining sector have continue to be advertised for employment (I received couple of them). And while we are talking, some of those laid off by BNL are now working in the other resource sector.

    Open your eyes PNG, these are all politics. Politicians are looking around for every issues that can be use as a weapon to attach each other. To cut the story, I don’t trust the opposition. I see a bright future for this country if PMJM is allowed to continue.

  • Oil and gas companies put a hold on operations or scaled down operations because of the Covid_19 induced drop in oil prices. This was a global problem and not Marape’s doing!

  • How much loan was obtained for the Covid-19 to help SMEs stabilize jobs, decrease BSP loan rates, etc?? We heard it all. We also heard about government looking at borrowing K6 billion for these Covid-19 operations – it was all over the mainstream news. So how much was borrowed up to now?? There’s nothing much to show for it.

  • All PM JM has done is for the good of this country. Foreigners are here stealing from us and they done even go by the rules. This is time we take back PNG from them and set out our own conditions and if they don’t want to comply then fuck them out and get in new contractors.

    There are more Jobs for the profession of those people without jobs, if they move around they can surely find a suitable job to sustain their family.

    Despite everyone or some of you people thinking negetive about PM JM, i strongly support his decisions.
    This is how we can take back PNG.

  • PP is a total disaster and will remain a total disaster for the rest of his life….. Over to you Aitape- Lumians, Make a wise choice come next election, 2022

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