State to sue media firm

THE Government is considering filing a legal suit and criminal complaint with the police against the Post-Courier over a report on the granting of a development licence for the P’nyang gas project.
“We consider the report (published on Nov 18) misleading and malicious. We are seeking advice to initiate legal action against Post-Courier, as well as filing a criminal complaint with the police against the newspaper,” Lupari told The National on Monday.
According to a statement issued by Petroleum and Energy Minister Kerenga Kua, the matter was raised before Prime Minister James Marape who said “no one was negotiating for any personal benefits on the gas agreement”.
“Marape categorically denies any insinuation that anyone is entering into this negotiation for personal benefit.
“However, the second but most important thing is that the story was deliberately planted by foreign interest through a foreign-owned media company to discredit the State Negotiating Team (SNT), and to drive public opinion against the State before negotiation commenced,” Kua said.
Kua said the negotiation for the gas project between the SNT and Exxon started at 10am Monday.
“We note that Post-Courier is owned by developed nations.
“It is here to defend and advance its political and economic interests. Post Courier has acted precisely on que to destabilise the SNT just before our very own senior public servants step into the room on this momentous occasion,” he added.
“Let us not fall into the trap set for us by highly sophisticated propaganda machinery of the developed nations.
“Today, I ask each and every one of us to rally behind our very own SNT.
“The team sheet has been set and approved by me, the P’nyang Ministerial Committee, and finally the Prime Minister, in that sequence, and all of us are satisfied that the content and procedure we are adopting are all in accord with our laws. SNT is not acting alone,” Kua said.
He said what Post-Courier has done borders on unlawfully procuring classified state information, as well as attempting to commit an economic sabotage of an important economic project that will potentially improve the living standards of millions of people in Papua New Guinea.
“The State is looking into Post-Courier’s behavior in this instance.
The means by which they obtained any information, and the timing of their publication, just hours before the SNT enters the negotiation room at 10am.
“All these raises serious questions about Post-Courier’s underlying motives and their loyalty to this young nation,” Kua added.