Newspaper, MP asked to apologise

THE Special Lands Title Commission into the Wafi Golpu gold exploration licences has demanded apologies from the Post-Courier and Bulolo  MP Sam Basil.
Commissioner Law-rence Titimur said in a statement last Friday that the hearings over the ownership of customary land within the exploration leases designated as EL 440, EL 1103 and EL 1105, known as the Wafi Golpu gold mining project areas and more generally known as Piu Portion 8C, Milinch of Wasus and Fourmil of Markham, “is deemed to have been unduly prejudiced by the Post-Courier and Mr Basil”.
The commission indicated that this was in accordance with the printing of a news report last Wednesday.
Mr Titimur and commissioners Robert Irung and Richard Cherake described the report as “false political propaganda”.
They wanted the newspaper and Mr Basil to retract the news report and apologise to the people of Mumeng, the parties of Mumeng and Huon Gulf who are still in court, and also to the commission.
They said the “prejudicial item (news report) had stated Mr Basil vowing to fight tooth and nail for the people of Mumeng to benefit directly from the Wafi Golpu gold project”.
They said the newspaper and MP had failed to adequately comply with directions laid out by the commission.
They said failure to comply with the direction would “cause due process to take place”.