PNG Government passes supplementary budget

The PNG government has passed the 2016 Supplementary Budget using its numerical strength yesterday when the Treasurer Patrick Pruaitch presented it on the floor of Parliament.

Mr. Pruaitch said the first six months of the year has been tough for many economies and Papua New Guinea has been no different.

He said the supplementary budget comprises adjustments that include both expenditure-saving measures of K928 million and additional revenue-raising measures of K958 million.

Works Department and National Development Bank received the biggest cuts in the supplementary budget amounting to over K3billion which has not gone down well with the Opposition.

Leader Don Polye said the supplementary budget is a way of admitting that the government did a bad budget for 2016 with wrong projections in the first place.

He blasted the government for bulldozing the budget through without been transparent and allowing the parliament to debate it before passing it.