Sale of state land worries mayor

LORD mayor James Khay is concerned at the increasing numbers of state land that have been sold to individuals and companies.
He said yesterday that there were parks and farms that belonged to the state that were sold without the approval of the provincial lands board and the Lae city council.
Kay’s comments followed the eviction of settlers of the Kau Banis, along Buimo Road.
The settlers had been given a 21-day notice a fortnight ago by a company which said it owned the land.
The land, opposite the Timber and Forestry Training College, a campus of the University of Technology, used to be a cattle ranch.
The college itself used to be a poultry farm.
Both were owned by the Department of Primary Industry in the 1970s.
About 1980, the cattle farm was moved to Erap and the land left vacant.
The settlers claimed that they had lived there for more than 20 years and should have been given the opportunity to buy the land.
Their move is being backed by Morobe Governor Luther Wenge who said that settlers living on state land were contributing to the economy of the province and the country.
He had told the settlers that the provincial government would assist with their legal expenses.
“The plight of the settlers will no different from other settlers around the city who are residing on state land which have now been sold off,” Khay added.