Motukea Wharf probe extended

The National National

THE hearings for the Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the sale and purchase of the Motukea Wharf in Port Moresby has been extended for a further six months.
According to a gazette dated June 23, Prime Minister James Marape had extended it.
Marape in the gazette said he maintained that the appointment of the COI was for the public welfare.
The objective of the COI is to inquire into and establish the facts surrounding:

  • The decision as to the relocation of the Port Moresby wharf;
  • The decision as to the selection of Motukea Wharf as the preferred relocation wharf site;
  • The decision as to the acquisition of Motukea Wharf and related funding arrangements valued in excess of K1 billion; and,
  • Individuals and entities who were instrumental in the negotiation (the middlemen involved) for and on behalf of the State and its instrumentalities, how were they engaged and how much was paid as fees for their services as brokers and negotiators. COI chairman and commissioner Sike Julian Toulik, who met with Marape last month, said the prime minister was impressed with the performance of the COI so far.
    The National had reported earlier that in 2019, the Marape-led Government froze the contract with Curtain Brothers, pending a proper investigation into the sale and purchase of Motukea.
    The Government also sanctioned an investigation into the purchase of the Motukea Port by the Peter O’Neill-led government.
    In 2014, the government signed a purchase agreement to relocate Port Moresby’s main wharf to Motukea.