Move services to districts, says governor

SOUTHERN Highlands Governor William Powi says service delivery and governance have been a challenge for the country for the past 37 years.
Speaking during a panel discussion at parliament during the induction of new members yesterday, he said service delivery had been a challenge because districts and the local level government areas had not been equipped and empowered.
He said if the government wanted effective service delivery, it should roll-out all government programmes in the districts.
Powi said the only way to see change in service delivery was through empowerment and basing  all government structures and facilities in the districts.
He said the provincial administration could only play an oversight and supervisory roll.
Development could not take place when the powers of the government system were centred in Waigani, he said.
Development would only happen when the capacity and facilities like banks, postal services, courts and other vital government agencies like health, education, agriculture and livestock facilities and officers were deployed in the districts.
He said all MPs and all bureaucrats came from a village setting and it was their responsibility to make effective service delivery.