Ombudsman Commission directs Govt to freeze loan arrangement Freddy Mou on Mon, 03/24/2014 - 19:58 [PNG Edge News] The Ombudsman Commission today issued directions to the Government to freeze all the arrangements for the K3 billion loan until further notice from the commission. Chief Ombudsman Rigo A Lua in a media conference late today said the direction will continue until the commission advises in writing that the investigations under the Leadership code are completed and/or that the commission is satisfied with compliance to justify the loan. “The purpose of issuing the direction is to ensure the attainment of the objects of Section 27 of the Constitution and in particular protecting the integrity of leaders who are involved in the loan agreement,” says Lua. He said the Ombudsman is not asserting that there are irregularities involved nor does it want to interfere with any development initiatives of the National Government, but to ensure compliance with all the relevant laws. The commission issued the directions asking for a collective cooperation from the Prime Minister, and members of the National Executive Council, Chief Secretary, the Minister for Treasury and Minister for Finance, Department of Treasury, the Attorney-General and the secretary for Department of Justice and Attorney-General, the Governor of Bank of Papua New Guinea, Petromin Holdings (PNG) Ltd, Independent Public Business Corporation (IPBC), Port Moresby Stock Exchange Ltd, Oil Search (PNG) Ltd and the UBS nominees Pty Ltd.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 12:19:56 +0000