Sudden change in road rules

IN 2018, the newly formed RTA (Road Traffic Authority) announced sweeping changes to the rules regarding the importation of used motor vehicles.
Quite simply, they adopted first world rules to a developing nation.
There is no manufacturing sector or union that demanded protection from used imports.
Did RTA consult with local licenced importers or even consider the economic fallout of essentially stopping used vehicle imports?
They have gone from 0 to 100 in terms of having no rules to then suddenly having too many rules, with no graduated improvements along the way at even a half-way point.
Why have they allowed private imports over the past several years? Under the guise of allowing personal imports as long as they were not sold? Those vehicles were sold, and, openly on local social media.
This was blatant fraud all of these years and contributed to too many vehicles coming in.
Car sales out of a public park with no warranty or licence?
What is the point of having an actual business and motor vehicle dealer’s license? Who is protecting legitimate importers and landowners who have massive capital investments in the country?
Is the mandate to strictly appease the new car manufacturers?
Perhaps. But only a small percent of the country can afford a new vehicle so that is a weak argument.
Is this change being done under the guise of being socially conscious and environmentally friendly?
That is obvious with the way they quote the Montreal Protocol and order all inquirers to refer to the policies and laws administered by the authority responsible that is Conservation & Environment Protection Authority http://www.pngcepa.com. (We have suddenly been propelled into a 1st world PNG)
In terms that the average person can understand: RTA will simply devastate the entire motor vehicle and related industries while driving up the cost of vehicles and actually stifling economic growth.
This is an undeniable fact.
The dominoes will not take long to fall as the damage spreads to other industries.
The changes came into effect early in the New Year so going forward the public will pay more for vehicles.
Small businesses, gas stations, repair shops, tire shops, importers, etc are bearing the brunt these changes merely weeks after the commencement of said rules.
Mass layoffs are the next domino to fall.
Dare I ask when the Finance Department will tally the losses from vehicle import excise revenue?
Each month in the past, several hundred used vehicles arrived into Port Moresby from Japan alone.
The government used to derive between K8 and K12 million each month from excise duty on those vehicles. When the ship arrived in early March 2019, there were zero used vehicles on board, so, no excise duty collected by the government. The next ship carried but three used vehicles.
The third ship since the change had a few more, just 90 odd.
So the loss in revenue to the government has been enormous to say the least…but I guess nobody noticed, there are other far more important issues going on down town now.
Many companies have begun to suffer enormous financial losses because of the RTA changes, all in the name of removing junk from the roads.
Imagine the number of old cars on the road in two years’ time because the Average Joe cannot afford to pay K90 to K100,000 for a used five-year old vehicle and will be forced to keep their current clunker on the road as long as possible.
An early estimate is that any given motor dealer will lose at least 60-80 per cent of their business as a direct result of these RTA changes.
Those figures are actually real, unlike many other numbers being spun by your local government.

Intruder