Bougainville chocolate festival starts in Buka

 Tuesday 26th September 2023

CHOCOLATE FESTIVAL UNDERWAY

The annual Chocolate Festival is underway.

This year’s three-day event is being hosted out of the Hutjena Oval on Buka Island, under the theme ‘Innovation and Information Sharing to Empower Farmers’.

A float promoting the event was staged yesterday, starting at Haku Constituency leading all the way into Buka Town.

The 5th Chocolate Festival already promises to be bigger and better, with close to 100 participants already booking a space to celebrate the event.

Vice President and Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Patrick Nisira, the Minister for Technical Services Joseph Mona and the Ministe for Police and Correction Service John Bosco Ragu, as well as representatives from the Australian and New Zealand High Commissions are slated to grace the opening today.

Among events to happen within the festival are a chocolate competition, awards for best cocoa blocks, school quiz and debates, seminars to highlight new skills and techniques to cocoa farmers, an open visit to the Department of Primary Industries Chocolate testing facility at Kubu and cocoa games.

The major event is the cocoa sampling of beans from across the region.

Doctor James Butubu of the Department of Primary Industries, says over 33 samples have been received from farmers across Bougainville and 15 have so far passed the test of beign good samples that can be converted to producing chocolate.

Doctor Butubu further says, Bougainville remains one of the biggest producers of cocoa in the country, over 150-thousand tons annually, which equates to between 120 and 150-million Kina.

The Chocolate Festival is hosted by the Bougainville Partnership Program of the Australian High Commission, but there’s already a submission to the Autonomous Bougainville Government to take ownership of the event.

The ABG is eyeing the industry for downstream processing to boost quality among farmers while at the same time generate internal revenues through encouragement of cottage industries.

*NBC Bougainville News

Lae biscuit eyeing overseas export

 

The Lae Biscuit Company based in Lae, Morobe Province and proud manufacturer of several biscuit brands that identify with PNG is aiming to sell its products overseas.

 

On the eve of the country’s 48 independence, the company received international accreditation as a Food Safety System Certification 22000.

 

This accreditation is issued by S-A-I Global and this accreditation helps Lae Biscuit to meet international food industry requirements.

 

Company General Manager, Edwin Elmer Wong, says in a statement the company takes great pride in being the first PNG-owned company to be given the Food Safety System Certification 22000 certification.

 

He says from a statement that being accredited means from the supply of raw materials to line production and finished products, including the up-skilling of manpower to deliver the end product they have to be food safety conscious.

 

Wong says it has been a progressive process since the opening of the state-of-the-art Lae Biscuit Company factory completed in October 2017.

 

In 2021, the Lae Biscuit Company along with 10 other food manufacturing companies in Papua New Guinea, met internationally recognized and approved food safety and control measures when awarded the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point or  (HACCP) certification by the Papua New Guinea Certification Services through the National Institute of Standards and Industrial Technology (NISIT).

 

Lae biscuit says that process took the Company three years to achieve the HACCP certification.

 

Lae Biscuit Company Chairman, Ian Chow, in acknowledging the achievement by the company, said this is such a milestone accomplishment. He thanked the managers and staff for working tirelessly behind the scenes and putting together all requirements to achieve the Food Safety System Certification 22000.

 

In the 2023 Australian NRL season, Lae Biscuit Company was able to get an advertisement on the Sport Shorts of the Cronulla Sharks players.

Judge says there is no such thing as a licence to kill as he sentences a police officer to jail

A policeman has been sentenced to 15 years in jail at Bomana with hard labour for the murder of a young man at the Gaire Fish Market, Central Province.

 

When sentencing the police officer Japhet Muka from Jiwaka, Justice Panuel Mogish said indiscriminate killings by members of the police force involving State issued firearm is prevalent and immediately calls for a strong deterrent sentence as a form of deterrence.

 

Justice Mogish said there are many case precedents involving police officers charged with homicide offences involving the use of state issued firearms.

 

In all those cases, he said the Courts have treated this as a special aggravating factor warranting a custodial sentence.

 

The court heard that on Friday 26^th March 2021 between 7pm and 8pm, the accused police officer was at Gaire Fish market along the Magi Highway.

He saw the deceased who was drunk and behaving disorderly.

The accused Japhet Muka called the deceased over to him. At that time, Muka was sitting inside a police vehicle.

As the deceased came close, he opened the car door. The car door hit the deceased and caused him to fall onto the ground.

The deceased got up and ran to the opposite side of the road.

The accused police officer then got his police issued firearm and discharged a shot in the air and toward where the deceased was running.

Unfortunately, the deceased was hit on the head with a bullet from which he died.

The accused police officer was returning to  Port Moresby from Hula after escorting the body of the father of late judge Jim Wala Tamate.

Justice Mogish said the aggravating factors far outweigh the mitigating factors.

He said courts have consistently reminded law enforcement officers not to flout the law in the discharge of their constitutional duties.

These remarks have gone unnoticed by a minority of the police officers.

Justice Mogish said imposing 15 years jail term with a reduction on pre-remand time is intended to act as a stern reminder to police officers and other members of the discipline force or security guards in other private security firms.

They must exercise a high standard of duty of care to those around them when in possession of firearms.

 

He said there is no such thing as a license to kill.

 

They must exercise restraint in the use of these weapons against anyone.

 

Only in extreme circumstances can be excused or justified in discharging their weapons. One such circumstance is where a police officer acts in self defence where his life is in imminent danger.

 

Why is it very cumbersome to obtain NID documents?

 This is an undisputed fact.

Many Papua New Guineans who have applied to get a National Identification Card from the office of Civil Registry have been waiting for as long as four years.

The question is why is this so.

NID applicants queuing on public road side before guards allow them entry to inquire and obtain documents 

It is plainly unacceptable. 

The government ministry responsible must intervene, audit the system and ensure the processes function in a user friendly manner.

One of their criteria is once you pay, you need to follow up.

Come on, that is non sense.

The applicant just needs to turn up on set date and just pick up.

Yangoru Saussia district clan gets nod for judicial review

A clan from the Yangoru Saussia district in the East Sepik Province was granted leave today by the National Court to challenge a decision by their local MP Richard Maru and others to acquire land and build a district market.

Home being destroyed as a result of compulsory land acquisition 

The Huanje Javahama clan represented by principal plaintiff Efex Kwarilomo have gone to court alleging that their customary land was acquired controversially and fraudulently.

Justice Nicholas Miviri after considering the evidence has ordered that Efex and his clan through their Moses Murray Lawyers file and serve documents to all defendants by October for the substantive hearing.

Though relieved by the court’s decision, principal plaintiff Efex Kwarilomo is still distraught about the dreadful events that occurred and have prompted his Huanje Javahama clan to file court proceedings.

His lawyer Livai Kuaken had to stand in for him and briefly spoke to the media.

"What has happened is that the district intends to build a district market, " Kuaken explained. 

Efex and his clan initially filed an originating summons on trespassing but while that was on foot, they learnt that a land title has been issued to the district authority named as portion 178C Milinch Kubalia, East Sepik Province and that was facilitated by the department of lands through compulsory acquisition.

They went to court again, withdrew the proceeding and then filed for a judicial review with a decision now in their favour to proceed to a substantive hearing.

What the court found was that the actions of MP Richard Maru, the Yangoru Sausia District Development Authority, the East Sepik Division of lands and the lands department committed errors of law and this was coupled with breach of principles of natural justice.

The court noted that there was no explanation given to the clan who owned the land before compulsory acquisition to build a district market.

The Huanje Javahama clan of Wamain village , Numbo LLG  had to be made aware because it was their customary land and their rights were breached and deprived from being compensated.

There was also no inspection by the valuer general.

Based on a falsified land investigation report of 23 June 2015, the court heard it was registered at the Lands Department and the minister applied section 10 of the and act to compulsory acquire it.

A K671,000 was paid by MP Richard Maru and the Yangoru Saussia DDA to someone who misrepresented Efex Kwarilomo and his clan.

They then forcefully entered the land destroyed properties and demolished Efex’s home.

Justice Miviri said Efex had legal standing to argue because he was directly affected, his home was demolished and he had no other administrative avenue to resolve the matter.

He said there was an arguable case given the issue of law against the conduct of MP Richard Maru and others.

Justice Miviri also said the decision by the defendants was unreasonable and contrary to the Wednesbury principles of reasonableness.

Losing candidate asks court to review her election petition blaming court staff for failing to upload on time

Delay by the court registry to upload election petitions onto the courts electronic case management system  (IECMS) on time has become the subject of a Supreme Court review application

A female candidate Dianne Unagi Koiam who lost contesting the Moresby Northeast seat in Port Moresby during the 2022 national elections has applied to be granted leave to review.

The national court had earlier dismissed her election petition for being incompetent as it was filed out of time.

Diane Unagi Koiam is among two others, Peter Dominic and Andabanga Nelson Baliawe who are challenging the win by Hon John Kaupa.

Their petitions have been dismissed for being incompetent as they were filed out of time and they have all gone to the Supreme Court asking for leave to review.

Diane Unagi-Koiam's lawyer Gloria Salika has strongly argued that her client has been blamed for the incompetence of the court registry and this is creating issues with all other matters.

Ms Salika told the court her client has fulfilled the constitutional responsibility to file within the required 40 days but the incompetence of the court registry to upload on the electronic case management system has inconvenienced her client.

Justice Derek Hartshorn has asked if the circumstances had any direct conflict with law.

Lawyer Ms Salika said the delay in uploading to the electronic case management system was not in conflict with law but  was creating issues with all other matters.

With her clients case she told the court, referring to an evidence in the review book that her client’s election petition was filed on the 21 September 2022 at 9.30am and at 9.44am it was uploaded on the electronic case management system

 

She argued that for the registry to say it was filed on the 23 September goes against the facts she had referred to regarding her clients filing.

Hon John Kaupa’s lawyer Paul Mawa has asked the court to carefully consider grounds to review if there were injustices, exceptional circumstances and there were arguments of law and fact.

Mawa said there seems to be no apparent error made by the judiciary and the circumstances argued by Diane Unagi Koiam's lawyer may be unusual but not exceptional.

The electoral commission’s lawyer has pretty much leaned towards this defence and briefly said there were no important points of law raised and the security deposit together with filing fees were paid out of time rendering the petition incompetent.

 

 

 

 

Hela presents position paper on Porgera

Governor for Hela Province, Hon Philip Undialu on Friday Sept 08, 2023, presented his province’s position paper pertaining to the Porgera Mine Community Development Agreement (CDA), to the Mining Minister Hon Sir Ano Pala.

Papua New Guinea's mining regulator has reported.

The Mineral Resources Authority says the presentation was done at the Airways Hotel in Port Moresby, witnessed by Vice Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on State Negotiations Hon Jimmy Maladina, Vice Minister for Mining Hon James Donald, Chairman of the State Negotiating Team (SNT) Dairi Vele, Secretary for the Department of Mineral Policy & Geohazards Management (DMPGM), Harry Kore, and the Mineral Resources Authority’s (MRA) Executive Manager for Development Coordination Division, Andrew Gunua.

Governor Undialu was accompanied by key landowners of Gas-To-Electricity (GTE) facility and well-heads, which has been supplying 70 mega-watts of power to the Porgera mine for the last 30 years. He said the Hela Province hosts almost 70 km of power lines that supply power to Porgera mine.

Hon Undialu said his government had raised 16 issues and proposals in the position paper on behalf of his stakeholders. 

However, he said some of the issues were commercial in nature and would be discussed in appropriate forums, while some will be discussed during the CDA process.

The leader said the 16 issues and proposals had been condensed into two proposals for the government to consider.

 He said option one was the ‘Porgera & Gas-To-Electricity (GTE) Project Integration.

“We are now proposing for a project integration or unitization,” said Governor Undialu. 

He said for instance in the PNGLNG project, all supporting facilities of the project, in Hela, Southern Highlands, Western, Gulf and Central Provinces, are all integrated, where we all work together in benefits sharing arrangements.

He said if this proposal was accepted, his government and stakeholders expect to negotiate with the state on benefits such as equity, royalties, Business Development Grant (BDG), Infrastructure Development Grant (IDG) and other social benefits.

Governor Undialu said the second proposal was to treat the GTE facility as ‘stand-alone project, and have its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) reviewed, and ownership be transferred to the provincial government and landowners, on a 50/50 basis subject to old Mining Development Contract (MDC) Clause 6.4.

He said clause 6.4 of the old MDC says that on the 10th anniversary of the mine’s operations, the power plant would be transferred over to the State. 

Hon Undialu said the mine started operations in 1992, which means that the GTE facility should have been transferred to state in 2002 which did not happen.

He said if the GTE is transferred to them, the provincial government and landowners would ensure the social security provided.

Minister Pala on receiving the position paper from Hon Undialu, said this papers would be considered together with papers presented by all other stakeholders integrated into a formula for negotiations soon.