Western Province Says NO to Pebo

Western Province has for so long being ignored and forgotten by successive governments, despite providing so much money to the national treasury.

Our only saving grace has been the income and projects sponsored by the Ok Tedi mine, in fact along the Fly River most communities refer to Ok Tedi Mining limited (OTML) as "our government"

As part of its social obligation each year OTML pays a sum into a trust account controlled by the national department of mining.

Many people from Western Province are wondering how the hundreds of millions have been spent from within this Trust account as there is nothing to show for it on the ground.

Our people have been fighting a court battle to stop all sorts of claims on the Trust account by dubious projects that provide minimal impact to the province.

The Provincial Administrator, apart from playing a very important role in providing leadership to the public service in the province, has the added responsibility of being on the Advisory Board that approves the projects which draw down funds from this Trust account.

It is thus the wish of the people that after years of mysterious schemes nil acquittals and money vanishing into thin air that we be very careful about those who are selected to have oversight over our money.

We want an Administrator who is in no way affiliated to or have links with any politician

We want an administrator who is committed to a working together with the people to understand the real needs of the province

We want an administrator who will ensure that all proper processes in tendering projects and awarding projects is done in a transparent manner

We do not believe that the nominee for Provincial Administrator Brian Pebo meets our requirements. He is not needed in Western Province.