Lack of proper planning failing us

The National Editorial

THERE appears to be no planning at all these days when it comes to establishing or extending new urban development.
Take our national capital city as an example.
It’s a mess.
Housing and Urbanisation Minister and Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko says the way the Taurama and Gereka land was sold and distributed in his electorate is a disgrace and an absolute mess.
He made the comments after concerns were raised by settlers at Taurama beach regarding the deteriorating state of the road, water and power supply.
Need we remind you about the daily bumper–to-bumper traffic jams caused by dirty overloaded vehicles spewing deadly carbon monoxide?
Port Moresby has more cars and less well-planned roads to cater for its needs now and into the next 40 years.
We need to have forethought to plan for our future needs.
Let’s look down memory lane and look at how orderly and neat Port Moresby and environs were for example, the PNG Defence Force Taurama Barracks and the Goldie River one on the banks of the river with the same name along the Hiritano Highway in the past.
There was a department that planned for any growth in the township and worked closely with Lands and Physical Planning and Works Department would draw up the city into zones for residential, light industrial, business, recreational and even reserved land.
Developers had to adhere strictly to zones.
Applications to rezone a certain area into another zone took a lengthy process and much justification.
Such applications would be rejected out of hand mostly.
In yesteryears, attached to the above was the Port Moresby town advisory council working in close liaison with the administration discussing issues such as town beautification programmes and problems stemming from parking areas, public toilet facilities and street names and loading zones and film censorship board for example.
The council discussed such agenda items and recommended to appropriate government and private bodies for action.
The colonial administration was criticised for its crowded Konedobu headquarters office complex for the simple reason that it wasn’t planned at all in the beginning.
As the township grew, the additional suburbs of Boroko were well planned by architects and erected in particular portions or areas designated for example:

  • RESIDENTIAL area – for the building of houses, flats, apartments and others;
  • RECREATIONAL area – for the erection of parks and gardens and sporting ovals and courts;
  • INDUSTRIAL zone – this is where commerce and trade business companies set up offices and factories.

Folks from our rural areas are pouring in every week to take in their share of life in the big city but with nothing to compare with the easy and healthy lifestyle they had left to migrate into Port Moresby.
With this unplanned development comes more overcrowding and the chances of sharing goods and services within our urban and rural areas of our country grows slimmer more so in Port Moresby.
It is no wonder everything is congested and services from water to electricity fail every so often.
Port Moresby is not alone in this dilemma.
Lack of planning, it would appear, is a national malaise.