Polye fears misuse of Public Funds

PORT MORESBY: Over K1.18 billion in 2016 Budget of which the Opposition Leader Don Pomb Polye says has been ‘exposed to misuse’ in what he believes ‘only a few individuals and departments are responsible for the funds’.

Mr Polye said these departments lacked the capacity for project implementation, alluding to the Prime Minister and NEC, and Commerce, Trade and Industry departments among others.

He added that those individuals had ‘questionable reputation,’ citing the Treasury Secretary Dairi Vele who has a pending warrant of arrest against him.

“About K1.1 billion of the K14.3 billion in the National Budget is under the control of the Prime Minister, his treasurer and the treasury secretary,” said Polye after thoroughly studying the Budget and its other related documents.

The Opposition Leader said K250 million appropriated in the last budget to the Prime Minister’s department had not been acquitted and questions still remain as to how these massive funds were utilised.

“One of the secretaries and some of the leaders under whose control and direction these funds of over K1 billion will be kept have very serious criminal charges against them.

“Unfortunately, they cannot be trusted if these funds could be transparently and honestly applied for the common interest of our people,” said Mr Polye.

Mr Polye called for this fund of over K100 million to be diverted to areas which has a greater impact on the people such as health and education.

“The question is: why appropriate K100 million under Treasury Secretary again? Should the funds not be parked under the rightful department – the Department of Agriculture and Livestock?” asked Mr Polye.

He said he feared the repeat of the deals which are similar to the nature of the controversial generator deal.

“There are many discrepancies in the Budget which the government deliberately has deprived the people of such information.

“This is why they did not want to be detected so they bulldozed the Budget without giving us a week to respond as is the norm in a democracy,” said Mr Polye.

Mr Polye mentioned that Secretary Vele bypassed him in his capacity as then treasurer and directly executed the instructions by the Prime Minister for the payment of the generators.

These funds, he said, were meant to achieve political expediency and not to improve the livelihood of the people, adding the areas the funds allocated lacked economic justification and viability.

The Opposition Leader has challenged the Prime Minister to divert these funds to priority areas like transport infrastructures, improving school and health facilities, building specialist health facilities, improve salaries of public servants among others.

“When we are in government, we will ensure MPs in Opposition fully get their PSIPS and DSIP funds and fund projects which will have greater impact on our people,” he said.