POLYE BLASTS O’NEILL ON THE IMPROPER PRESENTATION OF PNG AS A BUSINESS DESTINATION AT SYDNEY CONFERENCE Port Moresby: Opposition leader Don Polye has blasted Prime Minister Peter O’Neill for not selling Papua New Guinea properly as an attractive destination for potential business. “Foreign investors are interested to know if there is something better in the country’s Mining and Petroleum industries,” Mr Polye said. He said, for instance, has the Government of PNG done the following fundamental things that may destroy investments: Social mapping, genealogy studies and Incorporated Landowner Groupings. Have these activities been accomplished and done for all on-going projects in PNG? How effectively does the O’Neill Government address such issues? What is the new policy regime in taxation and equity participation in such projects? What is the O’Neill Government’s Law and Order combat and management policy? Is it progressing well? What about doing business in PNG? What is it like? Is it a monopoly? Is it an oligopoly? Does PNG have a level playing field, or are mining and petroleum licences sold readily on the streets? Professional and independent studies indicate PNG to be a highly corrupt country – but what is the O’Neill Government’s strategy to improving the situation? What are the values of the O’Neill Government and what are the values of the people? In other words does the Government walk its talk? For example is the O’Neill Government observant in adhering to macro and micro economic policies of the Government? Is the O’Neill Government strictly observant to the laws of the State? What are the country’s monetary policy and finance market like? He indicated that the Prime Minister has done a very poor job at promoting PNG in the Sydney conference. “The Prime Minister was trying to justify himself or seek sympathy from the conference for being the Prime Minister of PNG. “The people of PNG would like to see a Prime Minister properly market the 8 million people of PNG and the Nation, of which Peter O’Neill has failed miserably to do,” he said. He blasted O’Neill for treating the Mining and Petroleum Conference as another “budget lock-up”! “The Opposition is of the position that in future, PNG must be adequately prepared with the right marketing strategy for selling PNG and its capabilities at major conferences, such as the Sydney conference, to avoid the shame of achieving nothing,” he said. The following strategies need to be improved: There must be a specific Information Memorandum for the Mining and Petroleum Sectors, reviewed accordingly for each conference; Proper and realistic progressive reports of PNG’s mining and petroleum industries be prepared detailing successes or failures; The overall economic management plan/strategy of Government be outlined; An attractive Industry Management and Development Policy be put in place which could be reviewed accordingly when the need arises; Mr Polye said such fundamental elements of attraction were lacking at the Sydney conference. “Mr O’Neill discussing budgets was not what the industry was there to hear, or wanting to hear from the CEO of the country. What they needed to hear was if PNG has fixed its in-house matters and salvaged itself out of corruption! “This is where Mr O’Neill failed; he failed to sell PNG as an economy climbing up the ladder to a corruption-free nation! He also failed to inform them if his Government was a disciplined government against breaching prudent macro-economic norms and the laws of the land! I am of the opinion that the O’Neill Government’s leadership at such an important international conference was abysmal and not many investors were impressed or interested enough to come to PNG for business,” said angry Polye. Mr Polye accused the Prime Minister of allowing PNG’s standards to fall lower and become sub-standard. Approved for Release. Don POMB POLYE, CMG, BE (Civil), MBA, MIEPNG (Reg), MP Opposition Leader
Posted on: Mon, 08 Dec 2014 06:47:15 +0000
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