New Morobe physical planning board to address land issues, says Tkatchenko

THE new Morobe Physical Planning Board will address all land issues in Lae and Morobe, Minister of Lands and Physical Planning Justin Tkatchenko says.
Tkatchenko was responding to questions by Nawae MP Kennedy Wenge about no proper physical planning in Lae and the province.
“Last year I approved the physical planning board for the Morobe government which is now being set up,” Tkatchenko said.
“When it comes to physical planning issues in Lae and Morobe, they now can act in their own right to ensure that properly planning is done in their province.”
Wenge claimed that Lae city planning was not properly done, resulting in shops being built in residential areas.
Likewise, some houses were being built too close to the road, posing a risk to the residents which was a concerning issue.
Tkatchenko said the Morobe physical planning board was responsible to ensure all the road networks, infrastructure development and utilities were done without fear or favour and through a proper process and by the laws of the country.
“We must also remember supporting the minister for Works that roads in cities automatically have a 40-metre corridor,” he said.
“Anybody building within that 40-metre corridor of a road is illegal.
“We’ve seen issues in Port Moresby where evictions had taken place because people had illegally built their fence or property in the 40-metre corridor. This also applies to Lae as well.
“It’s up to the provincial government and their physical planning board to act on this immediately to ensure that road corridors and proper planning is put in place in any developments there.”