Picture: Children play at Log pond in Turubu bay, East Sepik, Papua New Guinea. Photo Coutesy of Oakland Istitute

Source: Post Courier

The Government has been restrained from implementing all the recommendations relating to all Special Agriculture Business Leases (SABL) until a National Court ruling in Wewak, East Sepik Province.

Limawo Holdings Limited said in a media statement yesterday that they were challenging the decisions made by the National Executive Council to cancel SABL based on the commission of inquiry reports that had recommended their cancellations.

"We are challenging, among other things, the so-called final reports and recommendations of the inquiry because the Commissions of Inquiry Act envisaged one final report from the commissioners which shall comprise the proceedings and the results of their enquiries and the reasons for their conclusions to be presented to the Prime Minister, but commissioners presented three different reports."

These were the interim report in 2013, the final report by John Numapo on June 24, 2014, and the report by Nicholas Mirou in July 24, 2013."

Limawo Holdings, through company secretary Willie Nilmo, said their judicial review application challenging these reports into SABLs, sought to challenge the findings and recommendations contained in the purported final reports of the much published commission of inquiry (CoI) into SABL.

It said the three reports have been stayed by the National Court which effectively restores the status quo to what it was before the CoI.

And as such, neither the CoI reports nor the NEC decision, which were based on them, be relied upon.

According to the court orders of August 13, last year, the Prime Minister, the NEC and the Ministerial Committee by their servants, agents, employees and whosoever associated with them are being restrained from further dealing, considering and or deliberating in any manner or form with the CoI purported report of March 2013 and the purported final reports of 24 June and July 24, 2014, respectively pending determination of these proceedings.

Deforestation in Papua New Guinea has been extensive in recent decades and is continuing at an estimated rate of 1.4 per cent of tropical forest being lost annually.