Taraka land set for tender

By GABRIEL LAHOC
THE Morobe lands and physical planning division says land surrounding the East Taraka school will be sub-divided and sold off.
The division said the land at the end of the residential suburb which houses the suburb’s first elementary school had not officially been sold.
It said once sub-divided, the land would be sold under a public tender.
Officers said while the school ground would not be “touched”, “it is the surrounding undeveloped land space that will be subdivided and offered to buyers”.
The division said, legally, it did not have the power to buy or sell any state or customary land anywhere in the province.
Division officers who had suffered massive criticism from the public who felt they were not being treated fairly over land offers especially around Lae, “have been under extreme pressure because of the influx of people into Lae”.
They said they continued with their duties and expect such reactions from a misinformed public.
“We are trying our best to control and give fair distribution to everybody,” a senior lands officer said.