Paita tells former PM to ‘move’

The National Main Stories

By REBECCA KUKU
LEADER of Government Business Rainbo Paita, pictured, has called on the former prime minister and leader of People’s National Congress Party, Peter O’Neill to respond to the Government’s call for him to move over to the Opposition.
Paita, who is also the Minister for Communications and Energy and Finchhafen MP, told The National yesterday that he (Paita) may not be worth responding to but O’Neill still had respond to the Government’s call.
Paita made the comment after O’Neill said he was “not worth responding to” following the Minister’s announcement on Friday that O’Neill and Maru had been moved to the middle benches in Parliament.
“The Government of the day makes decisions and that is the stand the Government is taking,” Paita said. “I expect leaders who understand the processes of government to make my job (Leader of Government Business) easier.
“The seating allocation was made in consultation with the Speaker, who is the chairman of the House so if he (O’Neill) has issues he has to raise it through the Speaker.”
Paita said O’Neill’s former seat had already been allocated to East Sepik Governor Allen Bird and so he needed to respect Parliamentary procedure and take up his newly allocated seat.
Paita said his position was simple – the Government was detaching itself from People’s National Congress Party.
“So the middle benches means that both he and (Richard) Maru are no longer with the Government, it also means that they are not with the opposition. They are now both middle bench MPs or in between the Government and Opposition,” he said.
Paita also said the Government of the day had made their position clear by asking the party leader and the deputy party leader of PNC to move to opposition, or better still the middle benches.
“I might not be worth responding to but he will and must respond to the call by the Government.”

4 comments

  • What type of leader is he or is he a boss, everything everywhere at Everytime comply to rules or policies, why can’t he (Mr O’Neil) simply comply to respond to government business.

  • Mr Leader of Government Business.

    PNG is are democratic country and people’s choice whether too stay with government or opposition, His mandated leader choice,

    Not dictatorship. Respected one and individual leader’s, They representing the people in the Parliament..
    Stop force leader too move there and here??

  • He’s a failed leader. Now he’s taking shelter behind the government in fear of prosecution if he is to go to the opposition. When he was PM, he always runs to the court to seek redress when there were any issues with his decisions or any potential implications against his decisions. All the decisions made were to suit his interests and he had a dictatorship leadership during his reign. Why can’t he be man enough to move to the opposition as he not wanted in the government. He is now like a contaminant in the government. I appeal to the former PM to behave like a mandated leader and move yourself to the other side so you can make checks and balances of how the government is run. You cannot hide behind the government and continue challenge the current PM. Stop being a whip and ship off to the opposition side where you deserve to be.

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