Western Governor Taboi Awi Yoto

Western Leaders back PM on Pnyang

Western Governor, Taboi Awi Yoto, and North Fly MP, James Donald, announced in a joint statement their endorsement of the Prime Minister stance to stop negotiations and focus on other resource projects currently in the pipeline.

According to the statement the leaders said PNG was entitled to a fair deal. And after the PNG LNG Project, they expectied ExxonMobil and project partner, Oil Search, to display commercial fairness and reasonableness.

The leaders said the companies chose to discard these core virtues.

It must be a standalone gas project!

“This statement is on behalf of P’nyang Gas Project landowners, Western Province and the 8 million shareholders of Papua New Guinea,” says Western Governor Taboi Awi Yoto.  

While welcoming the recent announcement by O’Neill-Abel Government on the accomplishment of the national building policies to ensure its citizens participate more fully and directly in our country’s gas industry, Yoto noted that the Fly River Provincial Government has to use this opportunity to benefit its people by utilising development of gas projects in the province.

MP dissatisfied with O’Neill’s response

During Parliament’s first sitting, Western Governor Taboi Awi Yoto asked for their share of the 2017 dividends from Ok Tedi Mine.

PM O’Neill responded by saying the Government is still holding onto the 33 percent share equity in Ok Tedi for the people of Western, including their dividends.

“As a Member of Parliament for the host district of the Ok Tedi Mine, I am not happy with that kind of response from a prime minister,” MP James Donald said.