K80,000 upgrade for road

By ELIAS LARI 
MORE than 30,000 people living from Avi to Aviamp, in the Anglimp-South Waghi electorate, Jiwaka, now have access to a new 20km road, thanks to their local MP and Health Minister Jamie Maxtone-Graham.
He gave K80,000 last Saturday to the people of the Kalampe Deklempe tribe and surrounding tribes to reconstruct the road.
The Avi-Aviamp road was the old highway before the Highlands Highway was built.
When there was no funding, the road was in a bad state and people used to walk for up to 20km to catch a PMV to Mt Hagen.
Delivering the cash, community leader Paul Pawa told the people to look after the road.
He said people needed the road
to access other services but for
many years his people had suffered because of the lack of access to a good road.
Pawa said whatever was given was a big help to the people because they now had access to a PMV instead of walking like before.
Joint district planning and budget priorities committee member John Lep urged the people to help maintain and look after the road.
He said if people could manage to look after the road, other services could follow.
Lep said Maxtone-Graham saw the need of the people and provided funding the road.