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Welcome to The Sunday Bulletin blogspot. The Sunday Bulletin is a locally-owned weekly newspaper in Papua New Guinea. It is a community oriented paper that strives to promote investigative journalism. We hope this medium of communication can keep you abreast of the happenings and events in the country and abroad.

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This week's local news - July 7 - 14, 2019.



Friday, July 12, 2019

Public servants warned to perform or shift out


By JOE GURINA and BENNY GETENG

PUBLIC servants in the country have been put on notice to lift their game or shift out, Prime Minister James Marape has urged.

He challenged the public servants to meet expectation of the entire eight million people because a huge budget of K4.2 billion annually is consumed by public servants.   

“Public servants you all must play the game right from wherever you are staying to produce what is expected of us because we public servants consume K160 million kina every fortnight paid by the state of PNG.

“The Prime Minister cannot do it alone; every public servant must grow in hand and deliver to the expectations of our people.

“Tell me how you can make PNG a rich black Christian nation on planet earth. You tell me how you can contribute in keeping an employment,’’ he raised these questions while making a public statement last week.

He said he will be making some strategic decisions to strengthen and improve the public service machinery.

“I will be making some hard decisions in the next few weeks, months and years. Hopefully when my time is up, I would have started a journey that will make PNG a better place than what we have right now,’’ Marape said.

“With our state of economy, you will have realized where we are. When speaking of our natural resources, you don’t feel a little bit doubtful and intimidated or insecure. You must not feel that way when PNG face robust economic business to make profit for you and your shareholders.’’

The Prime Minister said he will make amendments to the resource laws making it conducive for businesses and corporate citizen in our country that participate in the resource sectors to be strong, stable, prosperous and wealthy in driving the economic agenda of the country.

Meanwhile, he said the nation will celebrate 50 years of independence in 2025 so the country enjoys the benefits from the natural resources.

“I will not be here in 2025 and whatever changes we intend to do in the next one or two years will be prospective.

“I am looking into expanding my horizon into regions in Malaysia for instance, there are natural laws, I will be looking into similar economic serenity around us and deal with our resources. We must grow our economy to ensure our people benefit.

“I would also like to urge the public not to cause unnecessary law and order problems; and appeal to my people of Hela which I am proud to be the leader of to respect themselves and the law and order in PNG so that everyone can make a better PNG,” Marape said.

He further said gone will be the days of accepting bribes and letting perpetrators go free and even teachers leaving work on Tuesday or Wednesday to go to town and wait for fortnight.

This will be a new change of mind set and focus in taking back PNG and some of the measures to be put in place to bring back and instil discipline in the public service.

Marape urged public servants in the country to pull up their socks and perform and work accordingly to how they are paid each fortnight.

He said public servants who enjoy the privilege of getting paid each fortnight must now rise up and make a difference for the country.

“We must ask the question if it is not us then who will do it. If it is not now, then when will we do it?” he asked.

PM Marape said every fortnight the Government pays K160 Million to the 200,000 plus public servants in the country and they must work according to the money they are paid for.

“Departmental Heads and Chief Executive Officers of districts must get down and be strict with their employees so that they perform honestly in their respective duties,” he said.

He said it is unfair for the public servants out there in the remote places working tirelessly to be paid whilst some in the urban settings are paid more with not much work being done to help develop the country.

“In 2012, the salaries per fortnight were K110 Million and after six to seven years it has now gone up to K160 Million,” he said.

He said all public servants in the country including himself and the rest of the parliamentarians must now try to make a difference in the work they do.

“Pasin blo sindaun lo office na dring kande kulung nating to must stop,” he said. (The norm of sitting down in the office and drinking tea unnecessarily must stop now).

He urged Magistrates to be fair on their part in delivering sentences of crimes and avoid handing down decisions in favour of their ‘wantoks’ or relatives.

PM Marape stressed that under the new shift of service delivery; public servants based in Port Moresby will be trimmed and sent back to their respective districts to serve the people much better.
He said economic empowerment begins with an effective public service and public servants must take ownership of the work they do.


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