O’Neill dismisses contract claims

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has already asked Australia to explain the garrison services and security contract awarded for the Manus detention centre.
He was replying to Moresby North-West MP Sir Mekere Morauta who claimed there was a possibility of official corruption involving senior PNG politicians and bureaucrats on the Manus contract award.
O’Neill dismissed the claim as “rubbish”.
“Our government has demanded answers from the Australian government on how this contract was given to an unknown company and that it be cancelled immediately and retendered,” he said
He said it was embarrassing that Sir Mekere, a former prime minister, was making “unsubstantiated claims” which were “defamatory”.
According to Sir Mekere, an inquiry being conducted by the Auditor-General Grant Hehir will cover all aspects of contracts for Manus and Nauru and the report should come out in 2020.
He said anecdotal evidence suggested that Australian taxpayers’ funds might have been used as slush funds to prop it up.
Sir Mekere said the inquiry must establish whether any PNG laws were broken under the Australian contracts.
O’Neill said the contact would be cancelled immediately and retendered.