PRIME Minister Peter O’Neill has questioned the “impartiality” of the Ombudsman Commission after it declined to investigate Opposition leader Belden Namah’s reported spending of K50 million during the 2012 general election. O’Neill had asked the commission to investigate the claim by Namah that he had spent the amount on candidates vying for seats during the general election.
He questioned in particular where Namah got the K50m from. O’Neill said in a statement yesterday the commission had suggested that the matter be considered by the Registrar of Political Parties and Candidates Commission. O’Neill said he had told the Chief Ombudsman that the failure of the Ombudsman Commission to inquire into this claim “casts light on the fundamental question of fairness and impartiality on the part of the Commission”. “This matter is the subject of great public interest, which warrants an Ombudsman Commission investigation under the Leadership Code,” he said. “The Ombudsman Commission should not simply ignore the public complaint which has been lodged, and refer it to another authority for investigation.” O’Neill said yesterday he was concerned about “the lack of interest on the part of the Ombudsman Commission”. He said the people wanted to know where Namah got the K50 million from because “he was not a successful businessman before he went into politics”. “The people have legitimate questions that they would like answered,” he said. “Has he (Namah) declared this K50 million and paid tax on it? “Adherence to transparency is a responsibility of all holders of public office.” Meanwhile O’Neill will launch a national awareness campaign today as part of the ongoing fight against tuberculosis. A spokesman said the campaign would target specific locations such as NCD, Gulf and Western. It will run alongside current activities to fight TB.
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