A review of 20 unresolved issues of national concern 2007-2017

Papua New Guinea has become a land of lost opportunity with poor governance preventing the nation from reaching its full potential to enable growth, peace and prosperity for its 8 million people. The improper use of public funding and resources by individuals and state agencies and the lack of accountability and transparency in major government-funded projects have created an air of uncertainty and enabled a conducive environment for improper conduct.

The drafters of the Papua New Guinea Constitution in the pre-independence period called for the equitable distribution of the nation’s wealth among all citizens. But the appeal has over the years been skewed by individuals in position of power in their favor, marginalizing thousands of people and communities and ensuring that the wealth of the nation remained in the hands of an elite few. The country’s weak institutional structures continue to make the different arms of government and agencies vulnerable to poor governance.

The 20 cases have been grouped under 6 different clusters and were put under those different categories based on their thematic relationships. For example, under Cluster 1 (Risky State Investments) are Central City Project, Pacific Maritime Industrial Zone, 5-Star Boroko Casino Hotel and Sir Hubert Murray Stadium. These projects share the commonality of being projects where the State made a direct investment in the form of public funds (including concessional loans), the leasing of State land or tax holidays to the project developer or manager.

Review of Cases

This report is a systemic review of 20 selected corruption and poor governance cases in Papua New Guinea over a 10-year period (2007 -2017). It is mainly based on publicly-available information including newspaper articles, online reports, and telephone interviews and email correspondence with individuals familiar with the issues.

TIPNG’s intention in doing this review is to remind the public, our elected leaders and the media, that the cases need to be resolved through our concerted efforts- for the good of our country.

Download – Report Title: Lest We Forget A review of 20 unresolved issues of national concern 2007 – 2017