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PNG governor says independence vital for anti graft body

From Radio New Zealand

The Governor of Papua New Guinea's Oro Province, Gary Juffa, says the country's new anti-graft commission must be truly independent if it is to work.

The Peter O'Neill-led government has passed legislation to create an Independent Commission Against Corruption.

This comes as the Pomio MP Paul Tiensten was jailed for nine years hard labour this month over the misuse of three point eight million US dollars in public funds.

Gary Juffa says there is more corruption now in PNG because there is more money in circulation.

"There's also more opportunity and people, there's more people involved in it. Right now for instance in many departments corruption is from the bottom up, top down. Everyone from cleaner, teaboy, driver to CEO is in some way or another involved. If we are to have the Independent Commission Against Corruption, the important word here is independent. It has to be independent."

Gary Juffa says PNG is not the only country where corruption is a problem, saying it is often more advanced and less blatant in other countries.