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Patrick Pruitch should be blamed for PNG's Economy mismanagement

Commentary by Jeff Satu Lypin Lokait

The Treasury Minister was playing a strategic role in the implementation of the country’s economic matters and his withdrawal is scandalous and childish when we have only two weeks away from issuing of writs.
This article is in reference to the article about National Alliance’s break away from its coalition partners on the front page of the daily Post-Courier on April 3, 2017.
I want to capitalise my views on the subtitle which reads “Pruaitch blames for mismanaging the economy in the last five years.”

A question I want to raise relative to Patrick’s outburst on the state of the economy is, who has provided strategic advice to the Prime Minister on the state of the economy?  And who has handed down National Budget year after year in the floor of Parliament while rest of the ministers, PM and other elected members were watching?
It’s very outrageous dropping a bombshell blaming Prime Minister for mismanaging the economy while strategizing to build his own empire in the coming election.
PNG is not in the 1970s for a key minister to tell the nation that he is innocent. You have directed the Internal Revenue Commission to raise funds through increasing tax, you have initiated the housing tax scheme, you have increased the inflation rate, you have deflated the economy and you were in the fore front of all the mismanagement in the state affairs.
Your spilling of bean seeds is shallow and all the five fingers are pointing back at you, my state Minister.
I agree with Finance Minister James Marape’s hit back on Treasury Minister’s outburst.
In page 2 of the daily Post Courier on April 3, 2017 the Finance Minister refuted “while he is exercising his independence of mind, it now affirms in our minds why the country’s  Treasurer remained silent on matters about economic policies confronting our nation.
We now know he has a political motive to his lackluster performance as treasurer. He has never on one instance offered constructive policy options to improve the economy in the three years he has been Treasurer in O’Neil-Dion government.”
In the article titled “Diplomats unpaid for ten fortnights,” the then Treasurer claimed that Diplomats  have not received their salaries and wages up to ten fortnights and  some are facing possible eviction from diplomatic offices and their homes.
Why has the good Treasurer kept his silence for these long when our fellow PNGans were in dire need?
His office is mandated to approve remittal of wages and salaries of our diplomats serving in overseas and he has failed miserably to give what was due to them.
Why he has not used his ministerial powers to bail out those diplomats and their families facing forced eviction now? He is crying over spilled milk and giving irrelevant excuses to substantiate his stand but PNG know that he has a played pivotal role in the O’Neill-Dion government.
If the Treasury Minister was a good patriot he would have withdrawn his Party from O’Neill’s coalition partners at an earlier date. Why has he kept silent for all these years? I salute the current Opposition leader Don Polye with his cohorts for sacrificing his higher ministerial portfolio, he has made a decision that none of the other ministers will do. Don Polye is born leader and a true patriot of this country.
The current government has caused havoc to the state of the economy and people are going to make informed decision in the coming election and those piggyback-riders  and those who have been used as rubber stamps by Prime Minister should not proved to be innocent as people have been watching you. The writs will be issued not in the distance future and you will be back to your own backyard and you will tell your people what you have achieved for the people in the five years.
Papua New Guinea is not blind at this stage to make informed decisions on any matter relative to the affairs of this nation. We have been carefully watching each one of you. Irrespective of University students protest to set aside the current government on mismanagement issues you have been depending and now what has prompted you to leave your ministerial position?
It’s very outrageous for Patrick Pruaitch to come out in the last minute to tell his electorate and people of PNG about mismanagement by  the O’Neill government.
You should have a word to tell what strategic advice you have provided to improve the mess created that has cost your ministerial position. The current opposition leader has rejected the K3 billon UBS loan deal and revealed other confidential documents that’s why it has cost his Ministerial position and what have you done for the good of this nation?
When parliamentarians and ordinary citizens ranking from school children to old people were organizing farewell activities for the founding Prime Minister and the father of this country you have portrayed a bad picture on the party that he has established to form Government.  Although you may have a word to farewell the founding father your action has not gone well with ordinary citizens of this nation.
For a good leadership legacy an elected member who is with the Government must provide best advice which is beneficial for PNG, not keeping silence while filling your pockets and dropping bombshells when election is few days away.

Jeff Satu Lypin Lokait
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