Simon, Kombuk probed

The National Main Stories

By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
and PETER ESILA
ALLEGATIONS of misappropriation of about K22.7 million by the Department of Agriculture and Livestock (DAL) during the political impasse is being investigated, National Fraud and Anti-Corruption Directorate director Chief Supt Mathew Damaru says.
“Both Agriculture Minister John Simon and his secretary Daniel Kombuk have turned against each other and have filed conflicting complaints to us to investigate each other for allegedly diverting funds for Government MPs in the Loloata camp during last November’s political impasse,” Chief Supt Damaru said.

He said the impasse was between Prime Minister James Marape and Opposition Leader Belden Namah and the funds were meant for important agricultural projects.
“So we are now conducting investigation into both conflicting complaints carefully so that we will achieve a transparent outcome and not just a political witch hunt,” he said.
Meanwhile, a DAL officer requesting anonymity said the machine that printed the purported cheques for Government MPs was removed from the DAL office at the Central Government Office in Waigani and taken to a house in a suburb (named) in Port Moresby.
“From there the cheques of various amounts were printed and disbursed to the MPs and companies associated with MPs in the Loloata camp. The K22.7 million was all disbursed on the same day (May 4, 2021),” the officer said.
The officer said fraud squad detectives came to their office at Waigani last week and interviewed them.
Kombuk, however, said no money was missing from the K24 million agriculture price intervention support programme.
He dispelled circulation on social media about misallocation of the K22.7 million of public funds during the political impasse.
Kombuk explained that the K22.7 million was dispersed from the K24 million support programme.
He said the K22.7 million was dispersed to genuine farmers of different commodities in different provinces.
The secretary said a price support and intervention team was set up purposely to identify farmers and were then recommended to the office of the secretary for price support.
“I want to tell the people of PNG, that I am giving the money to true farmers, not paper farmers,” Kombuk said.
“I did not give the money on my own, all the recommendation comes from my team, I am in Port Moresby, but they are in Hela, Enga, Western Highlands, Chimbu, Jiwaka, in Eastern Highlands, Momase, and NGI, they make recommendation and I go by it, we have nothing to hide.”
Kombuk said it would take time to assess the impact of the K24 million to farmers throughout the country.
“Money went to all the projects, the project will take six months to 12 months to be developed, these are rural farmers.
“How can you disperse the funds last month and this month and you want the report, it doesn’t work like that, we have to let the programme run and after six months, we disperse the price support and intervention team.”

13 comments

  • Kombuk must provide evidence of such disbursements to the genuine farmers on the K22.7 million.

  • You say you say you are in Pom and you getting recommendations from your team. You have never been on the ground to assess. Mark my word this is another of the failed schemes like any others.
    All the best the best to the K22.7 million .

  • A very good and positive program that will help real and local PNGeans but the so called DAL Officers need to be transparent and follow all due deligence for the program to become reality. Public service complacency and corrupt mindset is spoilling agriculture sector.

  • Publish the full list with the names and location of farmers and how much money they received. Enough of corruption.

  • From what i know, the Minister was asking Secretary for K20 000 000.00 but the current Secretary denied. This is the Initial Start of conflict and blaming, Some of the Secretaries Rights was removed by the Minister.
    As far as I know DAL Secretary is practicing Transparency at all cost. All reports are being filed will be presented accordingly.

  • Project funds are disbursed according to project proposal. Cost schedules should marry the implementation schedule to determine amount disbursed per project proposal. That’s how evidence of disbursement are justified and then you conduct impact assessment through Monitoring and Evaluation which enables you to provide a overall report on the implementation of project funds. These are public funds which you Mr. Secretary and your Minister are bound by law to report to the people of PNG through the Parliament. Mr Secretary , you don’t do it anyhow. Simply provide the aquitalls on the disbursement and stop misleading… reporting stage is later…maski lo con.

  • The fraud squad must haul in both the minister and secretary and request full details of spending on the programs for which these funds were allocated. If funds were diverted for the purpose of buying political support during the impasse, the PM must be held responsible as the main culprit for this misuse of people’s money!

  • I have actually seen the secretary at a particular province (probably his home province) inviting farmers in a lodged, tilling government printed cheques. to my surprise those that receive the money ain’t farmers, as speculated by the good secretary.

    Please investigate, those so called farmers too, and let the People of this country know. Tru tru famers kisim taim stap, na ol kaikai man wantim bik bel acting olsem fama na steal stap.

  • Hahahahahahaha, what else do you expect when there is corruption from the head down in PNG Politics, like kids in the lolly shop! take as much as you can before the shopkeeper comes back.

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