Since the commencement of the Commission of Inquiry (“the Commission”) into the granting of the Special Purpose Agriculture and Business Lease (“SABL”) a number of anomalies have become apparent, one of which has concerned the Land Investigation Report (“LIR”). An SABL cannot be granted unless an investigation is carried out on the parcel of land for which the SABL is sought. The LIR is an important pre-requisite for the granting of the SABL.

Today, at the second day of hearing into SABLs for the Gulf Province, it was revealed that there was never a Land Investigation Report submitted for the SABL granted to Purari Development Association. The SABL covers a total land area of 656,034 hectares and described as Portion 8 C, Millinch of Auri, which also incorporates Petroleum Prospecting Licenses 237 & 238 owned by Inter Oil Limited.

The Gulf Provincial Lands Officer, Mr. Alexis Iva, summoned to give evidence before the Commission stated that he never conducted Land Investigations for the parcel of land covered under the SABL granted to Purari Development Association nor did he sight or was aware of a Land Investigation being carried out by the Gulf Provincial Lands office.

He further stated that under normal circumstances, he would have been directed by the Manager for Customary Land Acquisition from the Department of Lands Headquarters in Port Moresby to conduct the Land Investigation and submit a report. That, he said, never took place and he was not aware of any Land investigation being carried out by officers from the Department of Lands Headquarters in Port Moresby.

During questioning by the Counsel representing Purari Development Association, Mr. Zachery Gelu, it became apparent that what may have been purported to be a LIR and upon which the SABL may have been granted was in fact an aerial land survey report which was carried out by Mr. Iva and others sometime in 1995. Even so, Commissioner Jerawai, presiding over the hearing, pointed out that any Land Investigation conducted prior to 1996 did not conform to the relevant provisions within the Land Act pertaining to the grant of SABLs.

Mr. Roy Evara, Former Politician and President of the Purari Development Association, also summoned to give evidence before the Commission said that whilst being a member of cabinet and Minister for Agriculture in 1995, he did finance a Land Investigation and a report was compiled. When queried by Commissioner Jerawai, Mr. Evara admitted that without seeking to conduct a new land investigation and submitting a new LIR, Purari Development Association submitted the Report for the Land Investigation conducted in 1995 to the Department of Lands and Physical Planning for the granting of the SABL.

The hearing continues..

In related news, SABL Grantees for the Central Province appeared before the Commission of Inquiry for mention this morning.