Southern Highlands

A community leader and former senior public servant, Martin Firmin Pat has appealed to the authorities to respond immediately to contain the impact of COVID-19 on the province.

According to Mr Pat, since last month, there has been a surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths in SHP but there is no evidence of viable response from the local government.

Basic services have been lacking in the area for the last 47 years and elites of the area are determined to change the status quo.

The Association is now processing documents to get registered with the PNG Investment Promotion Authority.

Elites of Utame who formed the association are from Utame’s 10 council wards. They are working in different parts of the country.

Recently, the Elites of Utame met in Port Moresby and had several meetings, after which they incorporated the Association. 

It is five times bigger than Goilala and Rabaul Open electorates, yet all eighty-nine (89) constituencies in the country receive equal disbursement of fund from the national budget every fiscal year.

Many electorates have developed faster than others since they have surplus funds to expand in all sectors, while other districts/electorates face financial constraints due to such malapportionment of population in the country.

The distribution of these fingerlings is part of a pilot project that began in July this year. It is aimed at providing an alternate source of protein and improve food security in remote areas. 

The Fingerlings which are bred at Kalopa Hatchery on the Northern foothills of Mt Giluwe in the Southern Highlands Province. They were transported into Enga Province and distributed.

The Kumin Community Health Workers Training School joined by Christians from the other churches, youths and Catholics led the march.

The group chanted with placards and urged the killing of innocent mothers and sisters to stop and want justice and respect to prevail. 

“So-called witchdoctors, glassman and bamboo man that we hire make a business out of these false accusations by pointing fingers to identify our poor mothers and girls, (old/young) in society and destroying their dignity,” said Bishop Donald Lippert of Mendi Diocese and Hela.

The representatives are from the Hoiyabia, Puju and Yambraka communities in Hela, and Ekari in Southern Highlands.

The CBDRM training is being delivered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Mendi town and it is co-funded by the Hela Provincial Government and USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance.

The CBDRM training is empowering the participants with knowledge and strategies for strengthening community resilience to natural hazards.

The program was initiated by students at the University of PNG’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences at Taurama Campus, and supported by UPNG main campus students, the University of Goroka and Lae’s University of Technology.

The theme of the program was; “Ask not what SHP can do for you but what you can do for SHP”.

The students have cleaned up the most deteriorated areas of Mendi town with the help of the town authority, who has stepped in with dump trucks for the rubbish.

This was confirmed in a meeting held between the Southern Highlands Provincial Administrator, Joseph Kajetan, and IRC Commissioner General Sam Koim in Mendi yesterday.

The IRC office in Mendi closed down in 2017 during election related violence.

Since then Southern Highlands taxpayers were serviced by the Hagen Regional Tax Centre. The Commissioner General and the IRC team visited Mendi to see the business activities in the province and explore the possibility of reopening its office.

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill made this announcement yesterday afternoon in Port Moresby when announcing the government delegates’ visit to China on June 21, 2018.

O’Neill said the actions of those few people in Southern Highlands have brought shame to the whole province.

However, he said those leaders who were involved in one way or another will be going to Southern Highlands today to talk to the people.

The PM stated that this is not a new issue; it is an ongoing one that has been experienced time and again.

In a statement, Acting Commissioner of Police - Chief of Operations, Jim Andrews, said he is now making the following internal transfer directives so that the Southern Highlands issue can be effectively addressed.

The changes are: