Madang police to be deployed

By ROSALYN ALBANIEL-EVARA, Post Courier

POLICE personnel in Madang will be deployed into the districts starting this week in preparation for polling and counting the province’s top Superintendent Anthony WAgambie (Jnr) says.
Supt Wagambie said all officers had been slotted into the various districts last week during a briefing and are set to leave this week for the polling stations they have been assigned to.
He said for the 2012 National General Elections they had only been assigned four hire cars and one motorised dinghy in which to carry out their operations. This he said was a big cut to the previous elections but was quick to add that this would in no way hinder him and his officers from ensuring that the elections in the province are “fair, free and safe.”
“…We will do our best to ensure the elections are free, fair and safe for the people of Madang with whatever resources we have,” he said. He said of the four vehicles that had been assigned to police, one would be used by the Rapid Response Unit, the other in the Madang Open electorate while the other two, to Usino/Bundi and Bogia districts. He said Madang police were also expected to take delivery of a boat issued by headquarters adding that this would further boost the work of police not only during the election period but for its normal operations.
He said the boats had already left Port Moresby and are expected in Madang on Tuesday.
The PPC said he was pleased to report that campaigning in the province had been progressing very quietly with no major incidences being reported.
In making these comments he commended all candidates and their campaign managers for this achievement.

Ballot boxes yet to be moved to remote areas

Source: 

The National, Thursday June 21st, 2012

SOME ballot boxes and election materials in Madang are still awaiting transportation by helicopter to the remote polling stations, according to returning officer Adolf Duagha.
Duagha said it would need a miracle to move the materials from Madang to the four LLG areas before polling on Saturday.
The Electoral Commission had signed a K13.7 million contract with Heli-Solutions to transport election materials and officers.
The helicopters were used to transport the election materials to the Middle Ramu area.
Heli-Solutions has hired an five helicopters from an Australian firm.
A company source said the aircraft were currently in Wewak.
It needed the finer details from some of the provinces on where they should be flying.
“Despite the EC saying that they are ready, they are not yet ready, including in Madang,” said the source.
Madang also has a shortage of fixed and rotor wings. Islands Airways, the sole company to charter planes in the Middle Ramu area, is fully booked out.
Duangha said boxes for the four LLGs - Arabaka, Kowon, Simbai and Josephstaal - were going to be a problem as most roads were inaccessible.
“My major problem is Josephstaal. The only airstrip is overgrown and pigs forage there,’’ he said.
“There is no road access despite funding made available last year by the sitting MP Ben Semri. I cannot see any road and will have to depend on choppers..
 “It is the middle of the week and I need a miracle.”
Middle Ramu has 30 polling teams: 10 in Arabaka, eight in Josephstaal and six each in Kowon and Simbai.
There are 41 police officers allocated to the area.
Preparations for other districts are on target.
For Raicoast, there are 36 polling teams - seven for Naiudo, Naho Rawa and Astrolobe Bay and 15 for Saidor, the biggest in area.
Returning Officer Jimmy Aspel confirmed that all ballot boxes, fuel and the logistics had been sorted out. But he was not too sure about security arrangements.
“There will be police escorting the boxes to polling stations but whether they will be there depends on if and when their allowances are released.
“We will not wait for them. They will have to catch up”, he said.
For Usino Bundi, returning officer Steven Biko said he was confident of ensuring that the election would be conducted in a free, fair and safe manner.
He said helicopters were needed to move ballot boxes into remote areas of the three LLGs - Gama, Usino and Bundi. 27 polling teams will be on the ground - 15 for Usino and six each for the other two.

Madang officials told they could not vote

Source: 

The National, Thursday June 21st, 2012

By JAYNE SAFIHAO
POLLING officials in Madang were yesterday surprised after being told that they could not vote in the general election.
Madang Open district returning officer James Apimia spilled the bad news to polling officials gathered yesterday at the Yomba Hall.
When asked by one of the officials if they could use postal voting since they would not be at their polling stations, Apimia said the electoral commission had done away with the system.
He said the postal voting system allowed a lot of foul play and double or triple voting and had to be scrapped totally.
“Postal voting is no longer an option considered by the Electoral Commission as previous experience of the misuse of our own privileges was rife,” he said.
Insp Wesley Tetanga, the security commander in charge of the elections, said one only one police officer would be allocated to each polling station.
This is despite the assurance by provincial police commander Anthony Wagambie Jr that police were all set for the elections.
Tetanga could not clarify whether it would affect the 97 locations in the four local level governments.
He said most of the police officers would be deployed to the remote Usino Bundi area.
 

Building illegal

By ROSLYN ALBANIEL-EVARA, Post Courier

MADANG’S Director Lands and Physical Planning Francis Irara says the development taking place adjacent to the Kalibobo Lighthouse is illegal.
Authorities from the Madang Urban Local Level Government have also stated likewise and have since issued a stop work notice to the person concerned.
Last week residents were taken aback to see a two-metre picket fence being erected on Section 8, Allotment 14, which is the block of land between the famous Coastwatchers Memorial Lighthouse otherwise known as the Kalibobo Lighthouse and the Governor’s official resident.
The development had caused quite a stir among residents who had demanded to know who was responsible and who had given the person the nod to do so.
Local reporters found out that the person concerned was John Simi a small businessman from the East Sepik province who had claimed the portion of land not to be reserved and that he had obtained it “fair and square”.
Mr Irara when approached to comment on this development also verified that the land not to be reserved but a residential area.
He stated that Mr Simi had gotten the approval for this property from the office of the Secretary of Alienated Land.
He said given its current status anybody could apply for ownership and if provincial authorities wished for it to be made restricted then it would have to apply to have it zoned as such.
“…because this has not happened anyone can own it,” he said.
However, Mr Irara stated the development to be illegal and questioned the permit for development 025/12 that Mr Simi had in his procession to allow him to progress this development.
He said for any development to take place there were processes and documents which had to be produced before this could happen.
Tantamount was the nod from the Lands and Physical Board which had not met yet to approve this development.
He said for Mr Simi to be able to go ahead with this development he would have to produce a copy of the land title to verify him as the legal owner of the property, Physical Planning approval and Building permit.
The latter two he questioned as the board had yet to meet.
Meanwhile officials from MULLG yesterday also confirmed that a notice of stop work had been issued to Mr Simi and will remain until all processes have been complied with.
Meanwhile, Mr Irara also made known yesterday that Madang did not have a Provincial Land Policy.
He said the only policy in place was the National Land Policy.
He said because of this authorities continued to be caught unaware of developments such as the one now being questioned at Kalibobo.

Manam Islanders flee

By ROSALYN ALBANIEL-EVARA, Post Courier

MORE than 200 Manam Islanders in Madang province have fled to mainland Bogia following increased volcanic activities over the weekend.
Paul Mamburau a councilor from Dugulava said yesterday morning that Manam had been experiencing increased activities resulting in lava flow and heavy ashfall from the volcanoe since last week.
He said the activities had intensified on Friday resulting in the villagers mostly from Waresi and Dugulava leaving the island for fear of their safety.
He said some 400 plus villagers were still on the island awaiting further notice advice from the Rabaul Volcanic Observatory.
He said the islanders who had left the island over the weekend have moved to Potsdam Care Center in the Yawar Local Level Government area. It is understood that the volcanic activities have since receded but that the people have been placed on high alert.
Attempts to talk to disaster officials in Madang were to no avail as most are out on election duties.
Attempts also to speak to RVO in Rabaul were also not successful

O’Neill stole government from Sir Michael Somare, says Agiru

Source: 

The National, Friday 08th June 2012

SOUTHERN Highlands governor Anderson Agiru has told a political rally in Madang that Peter O’Neill and Belden Namah “stole the government from Sir Michael Somare”.
He said they had to breach the constitution to do that and the people must question them for their action.
The leader of the People’s United Assembly was speaking at a rally for his candidate William Banjoe at Laiwaden Oval. His other candidate is Anton Kulit who is contesting the Sumkar open.
Agiru said the actions of the O’Neill-Namah regime to usurp power in Aug 2, 2011, seriously questioned the integrity of their leadership qualities.
He said the people must not believe in their “sugar-coated” policies of free education and free health care which were unsustainable.
“Nothing is free in this world. We introduced subsidised education in Southern Highlands when I first came to office in 1997,’’ he said.
“But we stopped it.
“Parents became lazy and children did not perform in schools.”
Agiru said although O’Neill was a fellow Southern Highlander, “I did not support him because they broke the constitution”.
 “In my life, I fear two things: one is the constitution and the other is God,” Agiru said.
He said because of the politics, “Southern Highlands leaders are divided and Hela leaders are divided”.

Vote along party lines, says Amet

Source: 

The National, Friday 08th June 2012

MADANG regional MP Sir Arnold Amet said it was important to vote for candidates along party lines.
“Voting along party lines is important as it is the parties that will form the government,” he said.
“Election is a fight to form government.”
He told a Sepik community at the Biliau Maus settlement  that they must not vote for leaders who would go into parliament to make bad decisions affecting the constitution and the people.
He said to vote for them would be a “moral sin”.
He said people should elect leaders of political parties who would stand firm to defend the constitution which protected the rights of people.
He said people should refrain from voting for those who behave like “yoyos” and jump from one party to another.
People appreciated what he said and vowed to support  the National Alliance Party return to power as the current government was using heavy-handed tactics to suppress those upholding the constitution.