Opposition shocked, frustrated over firms slumping

ALL leaders should be shocked and frustrated to learn that over 90 companies in the country have begun the process of liquidation in the past year alone, according to the Opposition.
International Trade and Investments Shadow Minister Kerenga Kua said the number could be higher as this was just according to one accounting firm, Pini Accountants and Advisors, reported in The National on Thursday.
“It is deeply worrying to hear close to a hundred businesses are entering the stage of liquidation,” Kua said.
“Companies don’t file for liquidation overnight. What we are seeing is a total breakdown in the conduciveness of the country’s business environment over the past five years culminating in businesses facing the prospects of liquidation and employees facing bankruptcy.”
He said since 2019, the country’s private sector had seen a steady decline in business productivity and profitability due to mismanagement of the country’s national finances.
“The symptoms of the country’s economic distress have been present in the last five years, from extensive yet expensive vacancies in commercial and residential properties, moving on to loan defaults and mortgagee sales which we see in newspapers often, and finally to the liquidations we are seeing now.” Kua said this issue had also been in the making for some time.
He urged Prime Minister James Marape, who is also the Treasurer, to have the business acumen or understanding to address these issues.
He said businesses lead by Lae Biscuit and Paradise Foods, as well as Brian Bell and City Pharmacy Limited had expressed their concerns about the economy.
“Don’t take my word for it, instead listen to leading manufacturers and retail powerhouses who have said the economy has declined in the past three years.
“The Opposition is not making this up. The economy is indeed on life support, with businesses everywhere either doing it tough, or facing prospects of closing shop.
“Over the years, the private sector has always remained stable in the midst of crises facing the nation. However, we have now gotten to a point where the country’s affairs are being run so poorly that even the private sector is feeling the pinch,” Kua said.