OC to refer Money Act to court

The National Main Stories

By CHARLES MOI
THE Ombudsman Commission will refer to the Supreme Court for interpretation the recently passed Public Money Management Regularisation Act 2017 because it raises “serious constitutional issues”.
The new legislation passed by Parliament calls on all State-owned enterprises, statutory and public bodies to contribute 90 per cent of their non-tax revenue to the Government’s Consolidated Revenue Fund.
Chief Ombudsman Michael Dick, pictured, and Ombudsman Richard Pagen in a joint statement yesterday said they had met officials from the Finance Department to discuss details of the Act to determine whether there were irregularities in it.
According to the Ombudsman Commission the constitutional issues relate to the:

  • Right to ownership of property;
  •  Constitutional status of constitutional institutions;
  •  removal of jurisdiction of the courts;
  •  parliamentary control of public finance;
  •  harsh and oppressive penalties;
  •  protection of the law;
  •  Constitution as Supreme; and,
  •  Freedom of expression.
    The commission has invited parties who wish to join the case as interveners to contact the Commission to obtain a copy of the reference, once it has been filed.
    The commission said it was not at liberty to discuss further the merits of the case as the matter was going before the courts.
    Deputy Prime Minister and Treasurer Charles Abel had told The National last month that the Finance Department had begun monitoring the bank accounts of government agencies after the
    Public Money Management Regularisation Act was passed in Parliament.
    Abel said the Act gave the Finance Department the authority to scrutinise all the bank accounts of government departments and statutory authorities.
    “It gives them the authority to examine their bank accounts and authorise the process whereby the Department of Finance is going to tidy up the bank accounts,” he said.
    “You have examples where agencies of government have 15 to 20 bank accounts. So they want to tidy up that process and have only one or two bank accounts.”
    The PNG Fishing Industry Association last week expressed concern over the disruptions, confusion and anxiety caused by the enforcement of the Public Money Management Regularisation Act by the Department of Finance.
    The PNGFIA was concerned that NFA issued notice that the authority could not sustain its operations for the next few months.