KPHL gave info to PAC, says Sonk

MANAGING director Wapu Sonk, pictured, says Kumul Petroleum Holdings Ltd (KPHL) has provided information to the Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC) in the form of its audited financials and annual report with accompanying letters explaining why certain information was not included.
He said that information was either not in KPHL’s mandate or it had no right to disclose, especially commercially-sensitive or related to the PNG LNG project of which KPHL is not the operator.
In a statement, Sonk said: “While we still maintain that the request by PAC was not in line with their mandate provided for in Section 216 of the Constitution to examine public accounts and transactions of public money of PNG, which KPHL does not qualify in this instance, KPHL in consultation with the trustee and Prime Minister James Marape, we have provided our audited accounts and reports for the PAC to examine.”
Sonk said he was surprised to see in yesterday’s newspapers about KPHL not responding to PAC “when we delivered the 2014 to 2017 audited financials and annual reports on Aug 5 to the PAC secretariat office at Parliament House”.
“It must be stated clearly and unequivocally to the public that since its inception, KPHL has always abided by the laws and operated by the books by submitting its annual report, audited accounts and work plan to the shareholder/trustee, the National Executive Council, paid its corporate tax on time and when due, etc,” he said.
Sonk said he was proud of that record, particularly when the KPHL audited accounts from 2014 to 2018 were all issued “unqualified opinion” by Deloitte and Ernst & Young, who was KPHL’s auditors on contract by the Auditor-General’s Office.
“We are also releasing the 2018 annual report next month after the company’s annual general meeting.”
Sonk said KPHL hoped that the amount of information and documents that were submitted to the PAC sufficiently addressed “what they were seeking and urged the PAC to work through the Trustee of the company (PM’s Office) or the Auditor-General’s Office for further information.