Bart Philemon Warns PNG Faces Collapse Without Honest Leadership

Bart Philemon Warns PNG Faces Collapse Without Honest Leadership

Papua New Guinea elder statesman and former Lae MP Bart Philemon has warned that the prosperity and hope of the people are under threat due to what he described as inefficient, incompetent, and corrupt leadership among politicians and public servants.
Speaking at the PNG Update Seminar at the University of Papua New Guinea, Philemon said quality and incorruptible leadership were not optional, but an “absolute necessity” if the country was to prosper. He argued that corruption at the top levels of government trickles down into every sector, weakening institutions and eroding public trust.

Philemon drew on his own experiences from decades in both the public and private sectors. With emotion, he recalled episodes of political interference and corruption, shedding tears as he spoke. He cited an incident in 1975 when, as port manager for Air Niugini, he was flown to the Boeing factory in Seattle to buy a Boeing 727 aircraft. Despite Air Niugini management warning it was unsuitable for long-range flights, the political mood pushed for the purchase. Only intervention from Air Niugini’s part-owners, Ansett and TAA, stopped the deal.
The former treasurer said he was sacked twice, once from Air Niugini and later as a state minister, due to his stance against corruption. He also revealed that he turned down senior diplomatic postings, including ambassador to Brussels and high commissioner to London, choosing instead to return to his Butibam village in Lae.
Philemon said his personal stand against corruption led him to refuse national and international honors, including a knighthood, a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), and the PNG Logohu Award of the Star of Melanesia. He even asked for his name to be removed from a street in Lae.
“The pervasive corruption among our leaders undermines governance, weakens institutions, and diverts resources away from essential services, ultimately impacting people’s lives,” Philemon told the seminar. “It is not the absence of wealth in PNG that causes suffering, but the absence of competent, incorruptible leadership and management of that wealth.”
He stressed that good, incorruptible leadership must not be treated as a distant ideal, but as something that must be pursued regardless of personal costs. “For me, good incorruptible leadership and management is not an option—it is an absolute necessity if we want to turn this beautiful country around in the next 50 years,” Philemon said.

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