Leaders bid to stop poll

 By JAMES APA GUMUNO

COUNCIL presidents in Southern Highlands and Hela are seeking legal action to stop the local level government (LLG) elections in the two provinces.

Fourteen council presidents have engaged Mt Hagen lawyer Danny Gonol to take court action to stop the elections, which are scheduled to be held later this month.

They want their outstanding salaries and entitlements dated back to 1997 to be paid before the elections.

Their lawyers have written to gover­nors William Powi of SHP and Anderson Agiru of Hela, as well as their provincial administrators, to pay the outstanding salaries and entitlements.

In a letter to SHP administrator Ungia Kembo, dated May 27, Gonol urged the two provincial governments to pay more than K8 million to the council presidents.

He said the Hela provincial administration owed the presidents K3,768,606.38 while the balance was owed by the SHP administration.

Gonol said he had filed court proceedings to obtain orders to stop the Electoral Commission and the two provincial administrations from conducting the elections in the two provinces until the council presidents were paid.

He said Agiru and Powi had failed to settle what was legally due to the council presidents who had served their people with loyalty and dedication.