Okuk Highway

The fatal accident that occurred on November 10^th at Yaibos road Highway 14, along the Okuk Highway, had claimed the lives of eight young men.

The villagers, mainly from the Yakuman tribe, reacted this morning after members of the disciplinary forces removed the semitrailer without proper consultation with them and families of the victims.

Works secretary David Wereh said the National Government is funding the four lane road construction and there is a clause for local participation.

“We are providing allowance for local content because it is the Government’s fully funded project,” says Wereh.

He said people can lease their machinery to the contractor, getting sub-contracts or direct employment.

The second phase of the reconstruction and upgrading of the four lane road from Lae – Nadzab sections of the Highlands Highway will commence soon.

Wereh said the soil structure of the roads, particularly in the Highlands region, is unstable.    

The highway, sometimes referred to as the Okuk Highway, connects the populous highlands region to the coastal areas of Morobe and Madang in the Momase Region.

Wereh told Loop PNG that a new engineering design, created to address soil movement, will limit continuous damage on the Highlands Highway during the wet season.

Newly appointed Madang Provincial Works Manager John Sitapai gave the assurance following the instruction of the Works Secretary to get the highway fixed soon.

Mr. Sitapai gave this assurance following the comment from Usino-Bundi MP Anton Yagama in a daily newspaper urging the Works Dept and the National Government to immediately fix the deteriorating highway.

MP Yagama expressed concern that the travelling public including business houses in Madang had been seriously affected due to the poor road condition.