Micah’s move disappoints PM

 By MALUM NALU
PRIME Minister Peter O’Neill says he is disappointed that Petroleum and Energy Minister Ben Micah and his People’s Progress Party (PPP) have defected to Opposition.
He said this on Friday after Micah and his PPP members crossed the floor to join the Opposition ranks.
Micah was O’Neill’s chief-of-staff in 2011 and 2012 before the last general election.
“He is a leader, we respect his desire to be part of an Opposition team,” O’Neill said.
“We will see him at the election.
“But, of course, we are disappointed because he has been a key member of our staff, prior to him going to elections, but again, you can see that you never know who you can trust.
“You can’t even trust those close to you. Good luck to him.”
O’Neill said he would sit down with coalition partners and decide on who will replace Micah.
“We will stay focused on what is ahead of us: Let’s get the vote out of the way and we’ll make sure that we have one of our members who’s very competent to  manage that.”
O’Neill said the no-confidence vote was a backward step.
“It brings us back to the dark old days where you have to start up camps, talk to members, and so forth,” he said.