PM O'Neill blasts Opposition leader Don Polye for using “student issues” for political gain

L- PM O'Neill                   R. Opposition leader Don Polye

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has ccriticized Opposition leader Don Polye for using “student issues” for political gain.

He said Polye should hang his head in shame. “The nation of Papua New Guinea is not Kandep,” O’Neill said.  “He has to take a totally different attitude when dealing with national issues.

“An innocent student is dead following a vicious attack on the weekend. Of course a number of students were previously injured in Port Moresby. We all recognize that there has been interference in these issues from members of Parliament.”

He was reacting to statements from Polye blaming the Government for the events leading up to the student’s death. 

“We know that the Opposition has been stirring unrest, has been involved in providing resources to protestors and was even writing material for the protestors as they prepared their petition,” O’Neill said.

He accused Polye “and his cronies” of “stirring up the students and misleading them with false ideas”. 

He said the Opposition was undermining the economy and the image of the nation. “Every democracy needs a strong opposition to debate the issues of the day and help strengthen the policy development process,” O’Neill said.

“But all we see (from Polye) are political games, misinformation and backroom murky activities such as misleading student groups.”

Meanwhile, Polye yesterday accused the Government of leading the country into financial woes and uncertainty. He called on Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari to resign for failing to give sound advice to steer the country out of its financial woes.

Polye also said O’Neill must admit that the Government had mismanaged the economy, squandered the country’s resources and personalised the police and defence forces “thus dividing the people”.