Poor service delivery: Gelu

THE country’s 89 districts are headed by politicians and the service delivery is poor, Dr Alphonse Gelu, head of political research at the National Research Institute (NRI), said.
Dr Gelu said this during the NRI road show presentation at the DWU in Madang last Tuesday.
He said the study had found that many of the districts were performing poorly and the services were not reaching the people as the politicians were in control over them.
Dr Gelu said the study also found that public administration throughout the 89 districts had been defunct and infrastructures falling apart.
He said most of the districts had no proper office equipment and many officers could not perform their duties because there was no transportation.
Dr Gelu said other basic utilities such as communication, electricity, water and sanitation were also lacking, making it difficult for the public servants to effectively perform their duties.
He said these problems were made worse when there were no funds or when the funds were delayed.
Dr Gelu said that most often, funds allocated for specific project did not reach the rural districts as they ended up in the wrong hands along the way.
He said despite these problems, the study had found that many of the public servants were committed and dedicated to perform their duties but they were handicapped in serving the people.
He said it was sad to note that the entire administration funds were manipulated and controlled by politics.
“There is a big problem in the districts and politicians are in control and the service delivery is very poor.
“There is a need to review the decentralisation of powers and functions to allow service delivery,” Dr Gelu said.