Foreign exchange shortages have sharply impacted on PNG imports and contributed to rising unemployment levels since 2013, says Opposition Leader Patrick Pruaitch.
Pruaitch made this statement after economists at a recent forum at the Development Policy Centre, at the Australian National University in Canberra, revealed that foreign currency is a key cause of the big plunge in PNG imports.
The former Treasurer claimed that because BPNG is failing to perform its constitutional role as an independent Government agency with responsibility for monetary policy, it is also contributing to rising inflation by printing money to fund the Government’s deficit budget.
He said rising inflation hurts the poorest people in our society, making everyday goods more expensive.
Pruaitch said BPNG has failed in its mandated task of monitoring PNG’s gold, copper and nickel exports to ensure that all surplus funds are repatriated back to PNG and not left in overseas bank accounts to serve corporate interests.
He claimed that the BPNG Governor, Loi Bakani, continues to mislead the public by claiming that Government policy allows mining companies to retain export revenues in overseas accounts.
However, Bakani told TVWan News that being a former Treasurer, Pruaitch knew the process and procedures of such revenues.
The BPNG Governor said it’s not a government policy but project development agreements that allow projects to retain export revenues offshore.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Peter O’Neill also brushed aside claims by the former Treasurer regarding the same issue.