MP blames impasse for lack of service delivery

 THE current administrative impasse in Eastern Highlands has brought the province down to its knees, Unggai-Bena MP and Minister for Lands and Physical Planning Benny Allan says.

“For whose interest are we in this impasse, what can we achieve?,” Allan asked.

“With it lawyers, police, security companies and supporters are making money.”

He said money used to fund the impasse should be accounted for and report made known.

“We need to communicate with each other from council wards to local level governments and provincial level to perform duties and responsibilities.”

Raising the concerns during the provincial budget meeting in Goroka on Wednesday, Allan said a number of projects identified in the budget were never implemented.

In response Eastern Highlands Governor Soso blamed senior public servants for not implementing the budget and said they drew funds and diverted them elsewhere.

“We must now bury the past, what happened has already passed and we need to move forward,” Soso said.

She said under the present acting administrator Samson Akunai, a monitoring and evaluation unit would be established to cross-check budget implementation by designated public servants.

Meanwhile Obura-Wonenara MP Merrah Minnie Kipefa who was one of the two MPs present at the budget meeting said implementation was important for any budget and they needed to effect that.