Western Highlands admin probes sale of equipment

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Thursday 23rd May 2013

 THE Western Highlands provincial administration has instructed the Mul-Baiyer district to investigate the alleged sale of its dump truck and other items. 

Local level government affairs assistant secretary Benny Laki said the vehicle was sold to a buyer in Lae last year.

In a letter to the Baiyer district administrator Ogla Makindi on April 8, 2013, Laki said: “You are hereby advised to provide me a brief upon your investigation so that action can be taken to recoup the vehicle.”

However a non-government organisation representative said the dump truck had not been recovered.

“The district administrator did not respond and a complaint was lodged with the office of the provincial police commander,” Melanesian Solidarity Hagen north coordinator Tom Wete said in Port Moresby on Tuesday.

“The provincial police commander has sighted, signed and affixed the Royal PNG Constabulary provincial headquarters seal to our letter to district administrator Makindi.”

Another area of concern raised by Wete and his NGO group was the acquisition of portion 112 FM Baiyer land, which was originally part of portion 148.

Documents supplied to The National showed that Portion 148 comprised several high covenant houses, a fuel outlet and other council projects valued at about K300,000.

Further questions were also raised for the Baiyer district commercial land at allotment one, sections three and four and what the NGO claimed was the “illegal revocation of 60 village court magistrates in the Baiyer area.

“Their removal had resulted in an upsurge in law and order problems in Baiyer,” Wete said.