Papua New Guinea has a problem. The Pangu-led government’s silence on a major breakdown in decision-making speaks volumes on the lack of leadership quality and the stance of the current government in fighting corruption.

As exposed last week, an estimated K20 million (AU$8 million) has gone to waste on the purchase of expensive and unnecessary Maserati sports cars, yet no one is being held accountable.

Papua New Guinea’s long-awaited Independent Commission Against Corruption must be allocated substantial funding in the 2023 Budget if the government is to make good on its anti-corruption promises.

The Prime Minister has promised a fully functioning ICAC by 2023, but there are two crucial pieces of the jigsaw that are missing.

First is a substantial budget allocation and the second is the appointment of the first Commissioner and their Deputies.

Payroll taxes and Goods and Services Tax (GST) make up a large proportion of the government revenue which is used to fund its Service Improvement Programs.

K10 million each year is paid to every District across the country and another K5 million per District goes to Provincial governments. Then there is a further K500,000 for every Local Level government.

Billions of Kina are distributed every year through the Service Improvement Program (SIP) and every Tax Payer in PNG has the right to know how their money is being spent.

Effective action against corruption is essential for economic growth and it should be the number one priority for the new Marape government. 

PART B

Summary of Chapters, Conclusions and Recommendations

PART A

Executive Summary

1.1   This Commission of Inquiry was established under the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1951 by Instrument dated 30 August 2019 and, as amended in October 2021, it required a report to be delivered to the Prime Minister, the Honourable James Marape MP, by 31 March 2022. This is that Report.

Source: Mongabay / Rachel Donald  (7 December 2021)

Research into prosecutions for corruption in Papua New Guinea reveals that despite the enormous extent of the misappropriation of public funds only a tiny number of officials are ever charged and almost none end up being convicted or imprisoned.

This failure is likely one reason PNG shows no signs of overcoming its unenviable reputation as one of the most corrupt nations in the world and why allegations of corruption involving political leaders, the powerful and the wealthy remain rife.

ACT NOW has lodged a formal complaint with the Ombudsman Commission calling for an investigation into the government's purchase of 40 luxury Maserati motor cars for the 2018 APEC Summit.

Almost three-years after the Summit ended, the cars are sitting idle in a Port Moresby warehouse.

Illegal logging in Papua New Guinea represents a major money laundering threat as it generates very large illegal profits and it has a very high detrimental impact on the economy as well as the natural environment. 

This is according to a money laundering and financing of terrorism risk assessment published by the Bank of Papua New Guinea in 2017.