Image: Campaign Manager Eddie Tanago attends a regional forest crime seminar at INTERPOL headquarters in Singapore, Dec. 2024

A criminal charge of identity theft against ACT NOW Campaign Manager Eddie Tanago has been struck out by Magistrate Mr. Paul Puri Nii, in the District Court at Waigani.

ACT NOW is urging the Ombudsman Commission to act decisively as the 31st March deadline passes for Districts to submit their Service and Infrastructure Improvement Program acquittals.

The Ombudsman Commission should immediately publish a list of Districts that have failed to comply with the deadline and to take action under the Leadership Code against those leaders who have defaulted.

Continued inaction will erode public trust and enable the misuse of billions of Kina in public funds.

ACTNOW! i writim na Wantok Nuispepa i publisim, Mas 20-26 , 2025 

Pot Mosbi, Papua Niugini: Ripot bilong New Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) em Transparency International i bin putimaut long 11 Februeri 2025, i soim ples klia olsem Papua Niugini i no inap kontrolim korapsen. Ripot i tok PNG i gat ‘bikpela sans long korapsen i kamap’ na ‘i soim olsem em i no inap kontrolim korapsen’. PNG i gat nem nogut tru long Pacific rijon, na em i stap namba 127 long 180 kantri long wol.

The National | Letters to the Editor  

The Provincial Service Improvement Program (PSIP) and the District Service Improvement Program (DSIP) represents substantial investments in the development of Papua New Guinea's districts and provinces. 

These funds, intended to uplift communities and drive progress are drawn from the public purse, making their transparent and accountable use paramount. However, a critical gap exists in the current system: The lack of public access to PSIP and DSIP acquittals. 

New Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) figures, released on 11 February 2025 by Transparency International, highlight Papua New Guinea’s failure to deal with widespread corruption. PNG is classified as having a ‘high perceived risk of corruption’ with ‘no meaningful progress’ in anti-corruption efforts. PNG is the worst ranked country in the Pacific region and ranks 127th out of 180 countries globally.

Eddie Tanago, Campaign Manager

Papua New Guinea’s rating as highly corrupt in the latest global assessment published by Transparency International reflects the complete failure to tackle widespread forest crime

Transparency International recently released its 2024 Corruption Perception Index which reveals PNG is still languishing in 127th place out of 180 countries with a CPI score of just 31 out of 100, the worst in the Pacific region.

An injunction issued against community advocacy group ACT NOW! to prevent publication of reports on illegal logging has been stayed by the National Court.

In July 2024, two Malaysian owned logging companies obtained an order from the District court in Vanimo preventing ACT NOW! from issuing publications about their activities and from contacting their clients and service providers. 

Image: Part of a Public Notice published in the Post Courier newspaper by the PNG Forest Authority on 29 November, 2024.

The PNG Forest Authority has recently confirmed a moratorium on issuing new Forest Clearing Authority licences is still in force while it completes its audit of existing FCA projects.

Image: Campaign Manager Eddie Tanago at a recent Global Dialogue meeting at the INTERPOL headquarters in Singapore

ACT NOW Campaign Manager Eddie Tanago has been charged by police under the Cybercrime Code Act for allegedly publishing defamatory remarks on social media about the Managing Director of the PNG Forest Authority.