Sports promote unity among us, O’Neill says

The PNG Games is a great unifying sports event where many young men and women of this country play sports, Prime Minister Peter O’Neill says.
O’Neill, who is also Sports Minister, said it had been a successful two weeks of sporting events in Kimbe, West New Britain.
He said sports was one area that united Papua New Guinea.
“Over the past two weeks, we have seen the best of our young men and women in our country,” the prime minister said.
“You have competed in many sports, and showed us the great unifying power of the event that has taken place in our country.
“We have seen this a lot of times when we have hosted events over the last few years.
O’Neill who was soaked in heavy rain at Sasi Muthuvel Stadium after visiting the guard of honour, stayed on to deliver his closing speech to end the two-week 2017 PNG Games.
Earlier on, the prime minister officially opened the new Waisisi Primary School in Hoskins built by National Gaming Control Board and later travelled down the road to open the refurbished Buluma Bridge along the Kimbe-Hoskins highway.
He said the country had a proud sporting history.
“We hosted the most successful PNG Games, the Fifa Under 20 Women’s World Cup, and lately the Rugby League World Cup challenge when PNG was knocked out of race in the quarter finals,” O’Neill said.
“These are some of the major sporting events which Papua New Guinea can boast that they can host such events.”
O’Neill said he was happy with Governor Sasindran Muthuvel and the people of West New Britain for hosting the Games adding that for the past years, they have worked so hard to build high standard facilities to host the PNG Games.
“They have set the standard in terms of facilities and it will be a challenge to other provinces that it will be hard to match,” he said.
O’Neill said that the Games would next go to Southern Highlands (in 2020) and he was confident that the host organising committee (HOC) and the provincial government and other stakeholders would do their best to beat the Kimbe Games.
The prime minister also congratulated PNG Games Council, the PNG Sports Foundation and the sponsors for successfully delivering the Games.