#StopCorruptioninPNG 
​About 72 politicians and department heads visited Brisbane, Australia last weekend for the Prime Minister’s XIII rugby league match.
The entourage was joined by Prime Minister James Marape and included 13 CEOs, heads of departments and is estimated to have cost over K3 million in airfares, transportation, hotel accommodation, tickets to Suncorp Stadium, allowances and incidentals.
While Papua New Guinean’s watched the game live on TV back home, they were seen lapping it up at the Suncorp Stadium where the PNG team was thrashed by the Australians.

By Okuk Rogerson 
"Prime Minister James Marape Won In A Very Funny PNG Democratic Style Election."
So Prime Minister James Marape's electorate-Tari Pori , was first to vote in PNG followed by speed counting and declaration where he won by absolute majority in record time while rest of PNG is yet to vote , some voted with counting and declaration to be made within weeks and even months from now. This would never happen in true democracies around the world. No wonder PNG is ranked very high on world corruption perception index.
Now that he won he has time on his side to consolidate his reckless and destructive team.

​FIVE people, including the son of Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape, have been arrested and charged with money laundering in connection with the K1.3 million bust in Komo, Hela.
Police, acting on a tip-off on Saturday, accosted the five men carrying K1.3m cash.
They were detained but released on Sunday night. Marape, who was in Hela to cast his vote during the one-day polling on Monday, said no one was above the law, including his family members.
He said the police should be allowed to do their job.

IN an election year, this may sound like a negative and harsh view of the current state of affairs in Papua New Guinea but sometimes we all need a collective wakeup call.
Many, if not all, of the nation’s problems are blamed largely on the decisions our leaders make – after all they are the ones who are steering the ship.
But the responsibility is not entirely theirs because the people are the ones who put them there.
No doubt for some, this maybe a tough spoonful of medicine to swallow but PNG is considered one of the most corrupt nations in the world today and sadly this is a fact we cannot escape from.
We do not need a report or an international classification to tell use all is not well in PNG.

By Petrus GAND

CORRUPTION has affected many of our [Papua New Guinea] universities over the years. Despite enrolling a good number of students on merit, corruption has found a way to thrive in the academic institutions.

Corruption is found in almost every government institution. People pay public servants in exchange for favours and services.

What is happening to PNG? The citizens' national pride is diminishing, causing the people to fail their duty to take ownership and act collectively in every walks of life for the growth of this nation. We are the key to driving the development of our country.

LABELLING the corruption case as the worst of its kind, National Court Judge Theresa Berrigan jailed former National Capital District (NCD) election manager Terence Hetinu the maximum seven years with light labour on Friday.
Hetinu, 51, from Kainantu’s Biteve village in Eastern Highlands, corruptly received K184,300 from Michael Kandiu to influence the outcome of the election for the NCD seat in 2017 general election.
Judge Berrigan said those entrusted with power and authority in public office, at any level of the public service, must be accountable to the people.
“This was corruption of the worst kind, warranting the maximum penalty,” she said.
“This case involved gross breach of trust.
“It should never be forgotten that free and fair elections are the foundation upon which every thriving democracy rests, ensuring that government derives from the will of the people.

PNG’s copy-paste constitution adopted from the British and Australians is still in its colonial form, wielding more powers to the rulers.  Whatsoever the incumbent individuals prefer becomes the final solution.

The PM’s post is typically occupied by a leading party in parliament, while the Ministry cabinets are shared among its affiliated party leaders under a common-understanding. So when the PM wants to ensure its demands are met, a direct call is made to the respective ministries to eventuate its missions. 

The PM remains the chairman to NEC and so calls the shots in every circumstance despite hindrances. The PM, through procedural-protocols, reserves the right to hire and fire whoever that is beneath the atmosphere of the government. This system has proceeded and facilitates the PM to be a systematic dictator.  

By Petrus GAND
Democracy was described by Socrates as a system of governance where business classes overrule. Aristotle also reaffirmed that it was the worst system that could lead to tyranny. With both of the greatest thinkers’ assurance, Plato had already prophesied that in this system the judiciary mechanism will always compromise with the executive and legislative arm, creating more rooms for corruption.  

The finest contributions to mankind endured with its laden-lesions where humanity stood its feet on, although tremendous critics flooded in from various scholars.

A democratic political system should only have two political parties according to the theorists but PNG had overstepped the theoretical principles by having many parties. Perhaps, PNG had lived up to its typical ways by improvising, rather adaptably invented the many party system.

By Anton Polaiap
The buck stops with our leaders for not doing enough. For saying something in public and doing the complete opposite in private. 
A father at home is a leader. He sets the pace for the future. The children see at a tender age and follow throughout their adult life. 
The same father is a community leader. He quadruples the stain on the moral fabrics of society. Society is misled. Society is taken for granted and abused. But the father says it’s ok. He doesn’t take correction very easily to maintain his ‘big man’ stature. He gets violent and contaminates the minds of men, women and children, thereby ultimately giving life to corruption. How then can we fight ourself? Nogat nau. Painim ol arapela lain lo sutim tok. Em asua blo yupla ol pipol. Yupla ino save harim tok. If there is any disobedience, fathers are the worst incomprehensible guilty lot. 
This very same father runs for office and gets elected. Now you know where our problems take root. Corruption is a byproduct of the compromise fathers make on a daily basis. 

​The provincial administrator for East New Britain, Wilson Matava, has been arrested and charged with misappropriation of more than K500,000 intended for the Kokopo Tourism Hub project.
His alleged co-accused is lawyer Tony Waisi, principal of Tony Waisi Lawyers, whose Trust Account was used as what police fraud officers described as a ‘conduit’ for money laundering.
Fraud officers from the National Anti-corruption and Fraud Directorate picked up Matava yesterday morning and took him in for interview and was later arrested and charged accordingly.
Mr Waisi is expected to be interviewed in the coming week.
According to the major incident report prepared by fraud officers, Matava, 51, of Tavui No1, Balanataman LLG, Rabaul in East New Britain Province, is alleged to have dishonestly applied to his own use the sum of K510,770.40.
It is alleged that Matava, while assuming the role as acting Provincial Administrator of East New Britain in 2014, had a legal battle with the former long serving administrator Aquila Tubal over the position.