Former PM O'Neil Calls for Update of Investigations into PNG Ports Scandal
The Former Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea and Ialibu-Pangia MP Peter O’Neill has urged the current Prime Minister James Marape to provide a long-overdue update on the progress of the investigative report linked to PNG Ports. The report, released on March 2 last year, implicated a Manila-based multinational ports operator in alleged fund transfers to an Australian businessman’s Singapore company account. The funds were then purportedly used to provide perks to senior officials at PNG Ports.
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| Former PM O'Neil urges PM Marape to provide updates on the PNG Ports Investigative Report |
During a Parliament session on March 19, 2023, Marape denied any knowledge of the Australian businessman central to the PNG Ports-linked investigative report. Despite the denial, O’Neill expressed disappointment, stating, “Despite these grand announcements by the prime minister, there has not been one update on this most important of investigations into the goings-on regarding the control of our most strategic maritime assets.”
The investigative report was a collaborative effort between the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). O’Neill raised concerns about a foreign company allegedly gaining control of PNG ports with the assistance of an Australian businessman, who he claims is a golfing partner and close business associate of Prime Minister James Marape.
Attempts to obtain a comment from Prime Minister Marape regarding O’Neill’s claims were unsuccessful. However, Marape had addressed the issue in Parliament last March, stating, “Outside of golf, I do not know the Australian man (named) nor his dealings in our country. I have called for our National Intelligence Organization and International Revenue Commission to investigate the allegations of impropriety and corruption, and asked the publishers of the report to tabulate whatever evidence they may have.”
The call for an update on the investigation comes as concerns about the alleged impropriety in the control of strategic maritime assets remain unanswered. O’Neill emphasized the importance of transparency and accountability in handling such matters and urged Prime Minister Marape to provide the public with the latest information on the ongoing investigation. The allegations, if proven true, could have significant implications for the maritime sector in Papua New Guinea and raise questions about the involvement of foreign entities in the country's key infrastructure assets.
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