Polye calls on PM O'Neill to reveal 19.5 percent State Equity netted for PNG

PORT MORESBY: The Opposition Leader Don Pomb Polye has called on the Prime Minister Peter O’Neill to reveal how much has the state’s 19.5 per cent equity share in LNG project netted for the country’s purse.

Mr Polye made the call in the wake of the Prime Minister, welcoming the 200th shipment of LNG cargo, which left PNG’s shores on the weekend.

“The Prime Minister has deliberately failed to disclose how much the volume of LNG cargo shipment has earned for our public coffers.

“Our people are just fed up with his (O’Neill’s) serial lies and grandstanding statements.

“Does he have moral conscience to feel guilty of hiding the truth from being known by our people, who gave him the mandate to be steward of their resources?” he said.

Polye reiterated that the LNG revenues had been serving the K3 billion UBS loan through an escrow account in Singapore, adding O’Neill has been referred to the Leader Tribunal over this deal.

The Opposition Leader added that the majority of the people already knew about ‘his rosy media campaign to hide the truth with ill-conceived facts to suit his agent. 

He has expressed concerns over the erosion of transparency and accountability in the country.

Meanwhile, Polye said the UBS loan repayment would be due next Monday (June 13).

He added that if the country had already repaid the loan, it would have paid over K4 billion.