Transparency International PNG (TIPNG) is calling on the National Planning Minister to restore the integrity of both the multi-million National Identity (NID) Project and National Statistical Office (NSO) by suspending the acting National Statistician.
Roko Koloma is being investigated by the Royal PNG Constabulary Fraud Squad.
TIPNG has made this call after media reports that Koloma is being sought by the police in regards to a discrepancy of more than K24 million in the NSO accounts after the Department of Finance conducted an audit investigation in 2017.
“To preserve the integrity of the NSO and the NID Project, the Minister for National Planning must suspend Mr. Koloma until the Police have completed their investigations, citizens must not just turn a blind eye at such vast sums of public monies disappearing,” said Chairman of TIPNG, Lawrence Stephens.
“The NID is vital to safeguarding our democracy and the NSO is essential to measure the government’s efforts in national development. They are both assets of the people of Papua New Guinea and should be afforded the proper respect by the public servants employed as their caretakers,” said Stephens.
TIPNG launched 3 campaigns for 2018, one of which called for a full audit of the NID so as to restore confidence before the Project was rolled out across the country. At the time the Deputy Prime Minister, who is also the former National Planning Minister, said an independent audit committee would be established by February to quell justifiable public concern, unfortunately there is no indication that the committee has been established.
(Roko Koloma filepic)