O’Neill: PNG politically stable

PRIME Minister Peter O’Neill has told the Sydney Mining Conference that the Government he leads has overwhelming parliamentary support and its underlying political stability remains strong.

Mining tycoons, mining giants, corporate investors and multi-billion kina businesses interested in PNG investment were attending the PNG and Petroleum Investment Conference in Sydney last week.

"The assurance I give you is that in our country we manage our political interaction in a way that does not damage ‘good government’. We manage these issues in a way that does not undermine investor confidence or harm business certainty," Mr O’Neill said.

"These attempted distractions might keep the lawyers busy, but for the Government we get on with the job of managing the economy and improving quality of life for our people. This is the mandate that our people have given to us as elected leaders," he said.

"As Prime Minister, I have always regarded the maintenance of political stability and business certainty to be one of my key responsibilities.

"We are now well into our third year of benefiting from that certainty – and I am confident we will continue to do so until the people of Papua New Guinea have the opportunity to judge our government’s performance at the 2017 national election," Mr O’Neill stressed.

He made mention of the passage of the K16.19 billion 2015 Budget, the largest to date, and the Sovereign Wealth Fund which would further strengthen the economy.

Mr O’Neill said there was no doubt that there had been some political disturbances from outside the parliament this year that had caused some "confusion" to the casual spectator but this was far from being an issue relating to stability. "For any long-term observer of Papua New Guinea, they will know that this is just part of the robust nature of our democratic political process," he said.

"Certainly there is never a dull moment, fortunately we have a very capable judiciary that addresses such matters and deals with false claims. These events have the potential to concern some new investors, and can unsettle some in our own business community as well.

"As we move our nation forward, stability is key," Mr O’Neill said. PNG Today/Postcourier