On guard against dirty money I received an informative and encouraging feedback from a regular reader of Wantok in Australia on the articles I wrote recently about the issues surrounding our approaches to the national elections.

The reader in Australia commented on the issue of campaign funding that candidates and political parties receive from vested interests and lobbies.

I wrote then that generations of our Members of Parliament have been shackled by the campaign funding they receive from supporters each election time whereby they are obligated to return the favour through the discharge of powers and responsibilities they hold as MPs.

Here is what the Australian reader wrote to me: “Dear Melanie, as a long term reader of Wantok and regular visitor to your country I want to say how much I enjoyed ( as well as felt disturbed) by your clear expose of aspects of your political system.

“Extreme self-interest manifests itself throughout all democracies of the world, not just yours (PNG); it is just that those that have been in place for longer like ours in Australia, have learned to be more cunning in concealing it.

“Big money not only gets rewarded with preferential treatment when it comes to contracts but more alarmingly is able to actually dictate national policy basically by owning the lawmakers.

“An example in Australia is how the trillion dollar fossil fuel industry prevents any action on climate change with massive new coal mines still opening up even as bushfires consume our overheated nation and melting polar ice submerges parts of yours (PNG).

“Anyway, just to reiterate, your article gives me hope that these rotten practices are not escaping scrutiny.”

Yes, I agree with our reader from Australia that “rotten practices” in the realm of managing our respective countries must not escape scrutiny from the rest of the citizens. That is why I am harping on in this page each week in Wantok. We will not create a heaven on earth in PNG. There has never been a perfect country or society in human history. But mankind has always been on the quest to make its co-existence in each jurisdiction of human habitation and association better.

In the 21st century, we have global benchmarks that peak global bodies such as the United

Nations and its affiliates and the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and regional groups such as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) set for countries to meet and make the welfare of their citizens better.

PNG’s attempts at meeting those global benchmarks has constantly been challenged by all forms of corruption and malpractice involving our legislators, decision-makers and implementers in the government system and their associates in the private sector and in the general populace.

Our legislators, decision-makers and implementers are now venturing into unknown territory of engaging in the criminal underworld. They are now going there as if corruption and malpractice in the existing formal systems of government and business were not enough. This is a very frightening development for our country.

The fact that police are now hauling in people in positions of responsibility in the government system as suspects of the recent massive cocaine bust near Port Moresby does not help our quest to meet the international benchmarks as a progressing country.

If more people in the government system were hauled in by police as suspects and charged in this case, it will be bad for our international image and reputation as a nation.

It will not be surprising if our police investigators are able to track down some of the culprits in the cocaine bust and link them to those needing money to compete for political office and political power.

This is where the sworn oath of office for every police officer and staff of other government agencies involved must reign.

They must not cave in to undue influence, particularly political and business pressure which may involve outright bribery. The police officers and other public servants handling the case must make it exemplary and make everyone involved in the cocaine smuggling through PNG territory be held to account.

This is the opportunity to ascertain the extent of the problem and other organized crime involving national and international players – people in positions of responsibility engaging with those in the criminal underworld.

Over the past two decades, there have been significant shifts in how politics has been played in PNG. Hundreds of millions of kina has crossed-hands in the name of political office in due cause.

This has been more telling in the last decade with the quest to be in government among the various players more animated than ever before. Money and lots of it is needed to be in the

game in this vastly animated approach to politics.

The ordinary supporters may cheap in a few thousands of kina and goods in kind in support of someone contesting a particular seat in Parliament. However, to form and be in government so much more money is needed to host political camps and pay for transport, accommodation and upkeep of MPs and henchmen involved in such camps.

Money then must come from somewhere. Money to pay for these politic adventures must come from somewhere if it is not from the public purse. The public purse is, theoretically safeguarded by the Public Finance Management Account and other laws including the Criminal Code.

Signs are now emerging that dirty money from the underworld is entering the political discourse.

This is dangerous. Very dangerous for our country, it goes unchecked. We, the citizens, will not want to see dirty money from the criminal underworld surface and pay for the lobby to form a government and maintain a government in office thereby ‘owning’ and controlling government by remote control.

Our country will be doomed if dirty money dictates terms in politics. Politics, the way it has been played since independence in 1975, has cost us dearly. We, the citizens must not allow politics to continue cost us.

We must be on guard to ensure dirty money from all forms of sources do not dictate the terms

of running our country.

Fellow citizens, this is our country and our home. We must be vigilant and ensure politicians and their bureaucrats and their henchmen do not sell our heritage to sustain their prestige and power. The political survival of the 111 Members of Parliament and the survival of bureaucrats and supporters backing them must not continue to hold to resume the best interest of the entire country. Thank you all once again for reading. Send any feedback to this email address:

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