President of the Lae Chamber of Commerce and Industry Allan McLay has labelled Agriculture Minister Tommy Tomscoll’s public outburst against long-time Port Moresby Chamber personality David Conn as ridiculous.
In a statement, McLay said the racial undertones are very serious and show that the Minister will resort to any measure to prove a point.
He said the Minister needs a lesson on how a Chamber of Commerce operates.
“The movement is to benefit all its members so they can operate in a good commercial environment, free from as much political interference and administrative bureaucracy as possible.
“PNG grown vegetables is a great idea and is worth support from all corners of our society.
“It is however not merely a case of saying – “here, we have banned imported vegetables, now you can sell your own!” The farmers must have the land available and they must know how to grow the veggies, what fertilisers are needed if any, what quality is required by the supermarkets etc.
“Then they must be able to get the product to the market in the best way possible.”
McLay said the government and its agencies must provide the awareness and the information to the farmers.
“There is a massive amount of infrastructure required to ensure that quality vegetables can get to the markets in the quantities that are required on a regular basis.”
He said to impose a ban on vegetables when there are not enough grown locally, only pushes the price up so that the general public loses out in a big way.