Justice Minister Bryan Kramer is seeking court proceedings for a judicial review on the allegations made against him by the Ombudsman Commission to the Public Prosecutor for alleged misconduct in office. He told PNGHausbung this week that after receiving a letter from the Ombudsman Commission on the 3rd of December last year to respond to the 14 allegations made against him, he requested the Chief Ombudsman for an extension of time to respond to the allegations and also to provide the evidence they relied on to form the opinion that he was guilty of misconduct in office. He said the Chief Ombudsman however denied his request, claiming that it is generally not the practice of the Commission to provide evidence because all their investigations are confidential. “My view on the issue is only if investigation is on foot then information will be kept confidential,” Mr Kramer said. “But once an investigation authority arrives at a decision that the person is guilty of any conduct then they should always be afforded the right to review the evidence and respond to the evidence. For that reason, I never responded to the allegations.” “So I intend to challenge this decision of the Ombudsman Commission not to prevent it from doing its duty but to actually comply to do its lawful duty, and to seek orders from the court directing the Ombudsman Commission to provide me the evidence that it ought to provide in the first instance.” He said his lawyers are currently reviewing the grounds to file the proceedings and in the coming days when the court documents are prepared, they will file to seek judicial review. “But the Ombudsman Commission have every opportunity now to provide me the evidence to avoid us mounting proceedings to further cause any delay.”

Prime Minister James Marape, MP has announced that his Cabinet has cleared the P’nyang Gas Agreement, which now awaits signing between the State and ExxonMobil who is the lead project developer of the Petroleum Retention License (PRL) 3. The Prime Minister said: "When I took office in mid-2019, I committed to the nation better results from resource projects we were going to undertake under my watch and today let me thank ExxonMobil for responding positively to our State’s position to earn more from our country’s national resources. "We started a protracted negotiation that included detaching P’nyang from Papua LNG terms and moving onto a separate template to gain more for the State but at the same time giving respect to our investors' return on their investments. “After almost two years of exchanges, I think we have found the sweet spot where investors will be happy and we the PNG beneficiaries including Western Provincial Government and Landowners will be happy.” The Cabinet meeting approved the gas agreement, which has the following unique features comparative to both PNG LNG and Papua LNG project agreements that the State Negotiation Team led by Chairman Dairi Vele successfully negotiated under Minister Kerenga Kua’s guide. • Total state equity to be at 34.5% over and above the 22.5% allowed by oil and gas act, with ExxonMobil to offload 12% of their stake at fair market price to PNG parties of which PM has committed to offload most to Western Province and Landowners. Comparatively in PNGLNG we only have 19.6% and Papua LNG, the O’Neill Government signed up to only 22.5% as required by Law; • Corrected the definitions of “well head value “of Royalty, Equity and Development Levy so that deductions only feature cost of harvesting the resources unlike present definition in both PNGLNG and Papua LNG; • Secured additional production levy at 3% not given in PNGLNG project and Papua LNG is at 2%; • Secured 5% of total gas domestic use at much cheaper price than Papua LNG’s DMO, a far bigger improvement from PNGLNG; • No tax concessions except the increase on amortization cost and time period that will see PNG picking tax benefits in the later life of the project; • License to develop is to be sequenced with Papua LNG construction where our country will see increase benefits to the economy with both Papua LNG and P’nyang LNG sequenced to construction from 2024 to 2032 instead of just four years for Papua LNG; • With P’nyang coming on board, it means that PNG will be a gas producing nation up to 2060 and PNGLNG beneficiaries will collect toll revenue from P’nyang LNG in the period they are in production; • The P’nyang infrastructure will have capacity to upload other third party stranded gas in Western, Hela and SHP into the future; • The total project economic gain for PNG sits at 59% and with adjustments to the life of the project. It will rest at 63% all within the Marape-Basil Government mandate that SNT had used for the negotiations. PNG should note that in PNGLNG we are gaining at 49% and Papua LNG at 51% so above 59% to 63% is an all-time high for our country. PM Marape commended ExxonMobil for understanding PNG's aspirations by choosing to remain committed to unbundle the 4.4 TCF of gas that, if not developed, would remain in the foothills of our country’s hinterland. More details will be made when the gas agreement is signed next week Tuesday at the Parliament’s State Function room, the Prime Minister said. On a related matter, Prime Minister Marape mentioned Santos Ltd’s positive indications of additional equity in the PNGLNG project, based on his request to Santos if they offload equity in PNGLNG as a result of their acquisition of Oil Search assets. The Prime Minister commended Santos CEO Mr Kevin Gallagher for the good indications thus far saying this should recompense PNG parties in PNGLNG for dilution of their interest to only 19.6% instead of the 22.5% required by law.

Driving the important message of keeping fit and exercising, plus a healthy nutritional diet are all key messages that Trukai would like to drive for a good productive life as they strive to be the food choice of health and wellbeing in PNG. Under Trukai’s TruInspiration campaign that was launched last year with Chef Julz Henao, and their partnership with the Eat Smart Campaign, the rice company is now taking a holistic approach to drive behavioural change by partnering with SME gyms again this year. Trukai recently extended their partnership with three SME Gyms with a combined sponsorship of K30,000. “The three gyms that were selected to continue the sponsorship this year are based on their large engagement on social media, credibility amongst patrons with the services they provide, and their professionalism as an emerging SME in PNG,” said Trukai’s Brands Consumer Manager, Casey Kwasam. The three gyms include East Street Fitness, Peak Fitness and Primal Capital Fitness. Kwasam said that there was a misconception in PNG that exercising and keeping fit was only for professional athletes who participated at international sporting events, or individuals who participated in sporting activities during their leisure time. “Over the years Trukai has sponsored sporting codes and events plus professional athletes who’ve represented the country. However, through this partnership we’d like to drive the message that keeping fit is for everyone, and helps improve their overall wellbeing and life,” said Kwasam. Florence Daple, co-owner of East Street Fitness said their partnership with Trukai was a good fit because it not only built their credentials but it also grew their brand awareness allowing for more trust for competitive advantages in reaching their goals. “This partnership can help us reach out to more Papua New Guineans or even target a different kind of audience building our assistance in fitness and healthy living. We have never partnered with a big organization before, and so this sponsorship with Trukai, a well-established brand that PNG loves, gives us a platform to try to make a bigger difference,” said Daple. The Trukai brand stands for health, quality and flavour, as its rice is vitamin enriched with minerals and vitamins to give Papua New Guineans a healthier choice. Trukai is looking forward to the year ahead with its new partners, and have some exciting promotions and activities for all its consumers.

At Kina Bank, we value our staff and customers and are dedicated to making sure services are provided with great care which reflects our core values – Fairness, Imagination, Reflection, Togetherness and Honesty and in both good and challenging times helps set us apart. ‘’Covid19 continues to present significant health and economic challenges and for us at Kina Bank, the safety and well-being of our employees and customers remains our top priority. Our values have guided our response to this pandemic." "Since the outbreak, Kina Bank has initiated a number of protocols based on guidance from the National Department of Health to protect the health and safety of our employees and customers." "Our employees are the heart and soul of our company and because of their hard work and collaboration with our customers, partners and other stakeholders, we continue to provide much needed essential services to our people,’’ says Executive General Manager Banking, Leseieli Taviri. Kina Bank continues to adhere to the covid19 protocols and the “niupla pasin’’ measure set up by the government. We strive to make banking easier, more convenient and less of a hassle. And are therefore encouraging our customers utilize our digital banking platforms to skip long queues and start doing banking anytime, anywhere. We continue to encourage our customers to follow certain safety measures to reduce the risk of exposure and spread of COVID-19 while accessing our services at our respective branches nationwide. PHYSICAL DISTANCING •We encourage customers to maintain 1.5 meters’ space between themselves while accessing our services at the bank •Furniture’s have been rearranged to observe social distancing and physical contact. •Supervisors will be expected to ensure employees self-enforce physical distancing protocols in all areas. FACE COVERINGS • The use of face coverings, including homemade masks, scarfs, bandanas, or handkerchiefs, are encouraged to be worn at all times. TEMPERATURE MONITORING • Security officers have been equipped with hand sanitizers and Thermal Sensors to monitor movement of customers and employees through the branches. These measures set in place will continue to guide Kina Bank in how we support our employees, customers, and communities to overcome challenges together and emerge stronger than ever. We remain committed to supporting the ‘’Niupla Pasin’’ protocol and encourage everyone to take ownership by adhering to the best practice of prevention.

Controversial businessman Jamie Pang has been arrested and charged today for unlawful sexual penetration. This follows investigations into a video showing a young woman being threatened by a former policeman in the month of October 2021. At the time, ex First Constable Komeng Gubag was still a serving member of the RPNGC. From the statement of the victim, Gubag had picked her up and threatened her not to report an incident involving Pang. Gubag, who has since been dismissed from the Constabulary in January 2022, is currently held in custody on Remand at Bomana CS for another case. He (Gubag) was arrested and charged for this additional offence yesterday- Tuesday 15th of February 2022. Australian Jamie Pang is being held at the PNG Immigration Detention Centre at Bomana on other unrelated issues. This morning Pang was escorted to Boroko Police Station by the joint Immigration and Customs Task Force personnel. He was formally arrested and charged by Boroko CID Sexual Offences Squad on a complaint of Unlawful Sexual Penetration. After being dealt with by NCD CID, he was charged by Police attached to the Immigration & Citizenship Authority. He was charged under the Immigration Act for Breach of Visa in relation to a previous case in which he was convicted by the Court on Firearms charges. Pang has been brought back to Bomana Immigration Detention Centre . He will attend his Court case from there. Assistant Commissioner of Police NCD/Central Mr Anthony Wagambie Jnr has commended the NCD Internal Investigations Unit and CID Sexual Offences Squad for their professional approach in dealing with this. ACP Wagambie Jnr also praised the young women for being brave to come forward to Police. She had lost trust and confidence after going through the ordeal. He has assured her and her family's safety and that Police will deal with anyone who interferes with them. " Everyone has the right to lay a complaint for Police attention when a crime is committed. No one should try to cover up the fact." "A crime is a crime, and Police are mandated to register a complaint, investigate it, then arrest if Police finds credible evidence and ensure it is brought before Court to be prosecuted, to gain conviction." The Court will make a judgment based on how well we do our job based on evidence," stated Mr Wagambie Jnr. "Let me assure our people that there are more good cops than bad ones. We are working very hard to bring back that trust and confidence we have lost over time," said Mr Wagambie Jnr. The investigation continues.

In strengthening its foothold and branch based network expansion to accommodate the growing number of businesses and personal customers in Mt Hagen, a new BSP branch will be opened for its Mt Hagen customers in the Dobel area, Western Highlands Province. The new BSP Dobel branch will be the second fully serviced branch that will gain privilege of servicing Western Highlands and its neighboring provinces. It is scheduled to commence construction this year, 2022, and commissioned before the end the of the year. The new BSP establishment will be a double - storey, fully suited modern banking facility that will have a mass market-banking chamber, premium branch, 4 ATMs, and will also house the Mt Hagen BSP Life subsidiary branch with secured car parking area for customers. BSP Group CEO Robin Fleming announced this architectural plan saying, “the building will be a great new home for our team of mass market banking officers, businesses and corporate banking specialists.” “It will be fitted with a range of banking sections for our customers, including the Premium chamber for our priority customers, Western Union for overseas transactions, Lending for loan customers, SME for small businesses, and, customer service and general enquiries.” “Our customers play a major role in shaping the new format branch. The furnishings and design of the facilities are fully oriented toward people’s needs. We aim to offer all banking services to accommodate our customers’ banking needs. This may also help in cutting long banking queues, waiting time, and smooth service delivery,” says Fleming. He added that: “along with expanding full-fledged branch-based network expansion, BSP is also currently reviving its banking agents and sub-branch-based network expansion. This is part of the bank’s initiative to bring banking services to the doorsteps of communities to minismise expenses and safe banking.” Fleming also confirmed that BSP is also planning to open its sixth branch in Eriku this year, 2022 in Lae, Morobe Province to continue better serve the residents and people of Morobe province. The bank recently opened a few new sub-branches including Konos, Namatanai, Koroba Hybrid Branch and Palmalmal sub-branch to strengthen its foothold in the respective communities. BSP Group branch network currently operates with 78 branches, 40 sub branches, 300 agents, 554 ATMs and 11,033 EFTPoS across the South Pacific.

Forty nine (49) students from schools in Porebada and Papa villages learned coding and droning through the ExxonMobil PNG’s Science Ambassador Program in partnership with PNG Flying Labs late last year. The program was delivered by PNG Flying Labs during the third term school holiday. PNG Flying Labs is a local NGO with over 10 years of experience working with organizations and institutions including school children to deliver tailored coding and droning programs. “It was a great experience working and learning from the students from the Motu-Koitabu villages. The students displayed their artistic abilities, transforming simple circles into an animated coronavirus and white blood cell computer game plus simple squares into robots for a chatbot program. The fun part was that these bots not only spoke English but also the Motu and Koitabu local languages,” explained Sophia Soli of PNG Flying Labs. The program’s COVID-19 themed activities allowed the students to learn about COVID-19, hygiene, team work, critical thinking and problem solving. ExxonMobil PNG’s Science Ambassador Program, started in 2013, is an education advocacy program that encourages staff to volunteer their time to share and impart knowledge, expertise and experience. Five EMPNG staff volunteered their time to engage and mentor students during the program. Speaking at the closing of the program at Papa Junior High School, ExxonMobil PNG Public and Government Affairs Planning and Controls Manager, Diana Sigimet, thanked the students for participating. “We hope that through the program you are inspired and motivated to consider science, technology, engineering and math-focused careers,” she added. The program encouraged the head boy of Redscar High School, Raka Oa, to pursue his dream of becoming a civil engineer after listening to ExxonMobil PNG’s Science Ambassador Ginisegana Solien’s story of being a civil engineer. “Many of us don’t have experience with computers. This program has given us the opportunity to learn about technology and how to do coding. Such an opportunity would never have been possible without the ExxonMobil PNG Science Ambassador Program,” he explained Wendy John of Papa Junior High School wants to be a scientist, and used the coding skills she learned to create an educational computer game for her younger sister. “Having the ability to create something yourself and for it to speak in the local Papa vernacular was inspiring,” she said excitedly. Teachers at Porebada and Papa schools who assisted during the program were encouraged by the students’ motivation and passion during the program. Most students had never used a computer prior to participating in the activity. “We think of coding as something you do in university, but giving kids hands-on experience with coding can help open their eyes to a wider world of possibilities,” said Sam Kumbundu, a Year 8 teacher at Papa Primary School. The program ran at Redscar High School in Porebada and at the Papa Junior High School in Papa. Grades 6 – 10 students from Redscar High, Porebada Primary, Papa Elementary and Papa Junior High Schools participated in the program.

THE Commissioner of Police and Controller of the PNG COVID-19 National Pandemic Response issued 10 new pandemic measures which come into effect tomorrow, Wednesday February 16, 2022. The key changes to the measures are mainly in the international and domestic travel and social measures. For international travel: 1. Tourists may now travel to PNG; 2. Pandemic Approvals are no longer required to enter PNG; 3. All persons must be fully vaccinated to travel to PNG, unless they are under 18 years of age or are a citizen of Papua New Guinea. A person is considered fully vaccinated if they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine as listed in Schedule 2, within the past 6 months; or they have had the recommended number of doses for the vaccine, as listed in Schedule 2 and they have had a booster vaccine; 4. All persons travelling to PNG must have a valid COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior to their original port of departure. Children aged 5 years and under are exempted from being tested; 5. All people arriving into PNG will be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival; 6. If a person has within the last three months tested positive for COVID-19, a medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner from their country of departure, certifying that the person is no longer infectious for COVID-19 shall be accepted but the individual must still be tested prior to leaving their port of departure within 72 hours and be tested on arrival; 7. There shall be no quarantine for any person, except for persons who test positive on arrival who shall be quarantined for 7 days; and 8. It is the responsibility of travel operators to make sure that a person has the necessary documents to board an aircraft/vessel to travel to PNG. For domestic travel: · No person may fly if they are symptomatic for COVID-19; · All travelers must have their temperature checked by airline staff and no person may travel if their temperature registers at or over 37.5C (except for medivac and emergency flights); and · All passengers must complete a National Department of Health form which is to be submitted to the Provincial Health Authority on arrival. Changes to the social measures include: · Public gatherings are restricted to 100 people, however religious gatherings, schools, educational institutions, markets and shopping centers and political gatherings are exempted from the gathering restrictions but must comply with Niupla Pasin; · All organisations, including religious and political organisations must develop standard operating safety procedures for COVID-19; · No sale of alcohol on Friday, Saturday or Sunday nationwide will continue to apply; and · COVID-19 restrictions no longer apply to public transport. The new measures (attached) come into effect on February 16 and will remain in force until the duration of the pandemic or otherwise as decided by the Controller.

The National Airports Corporation has begun implementing a new initiative aimed at improving and increasing its efficiency in delivering aviation security services across national airports in the country. NAC Managing Director and CEO Rex Kiponge said this initiative involves identifying the right people with the right attitude from the outset, refining this group through elimination stages and then taking this core group through an intensive six-weeks training prior to engaging them. “We embarked on this last year at the Port Moresby International Airport, where we conducted walk-in-interviews which was necessary to assess the candidates’ behaviours and attitudes,” Mr Kiponge said. “From over 600 applicants, we selected fifty who commenced their training this year (2022) and are now half way through their six weeks of very intensive training at the Bomana Police Training College outside Port Moresby.” Kiponge said previously NAC had been trying its best to manage the attitude of its officers rather than upskilling them. “So far so good, I’m very impressed. Once completed, this program will be a game changer for NAC in the area of Aviation Security.” The training program includes, intense physical training, armed and unarmed combat training including Hapkido, self-defence tactics and classroom sessions that are intended to build the required physical fitness, instil discipline and positive attitude and impart the right knowledge and skills in implementing security measures at the airport. NAC’s Aviation Security Trainers and Bati Security Services are co-delivering this training and the trainees will graduate after completing the program.

National Airports Corporation presented to a police composite team two pigs together with K10, 000 cash last month for the festive period security operations at Jacksons Airport in Port Moresby. NAC Managing Director Rex Kiponge said festive operation is very important for NAC as they see increased movement of passengers and different types of activities happening and police have been effective in helping us keep Jackson airport secure and safe for the travelling public. The police composite team comprised of officers from Dog Unit, Airport Police, Six Mile Police, and others and were engaged by NAC for three months. Kiponge said in doing this, he wants to strengthen and build its relationship with the Royal PNG Constabulary while also supporting them with incentives for their operations. Currently, NAC is using the RPNGC Bomana Police Training College to train its new aviation recruits and is looking at police engagement in upcoming events including the national general elections. Meanwhile, Eddy Aimondi, team leader of airport police operations said police engagement during the festive period has provided new perspective into policing at the airports and said he is thankful for the opportunity and looks forward to providing similar support in future.

Guard Dog Security Services (GDSS) Lae was a proud recipient of the Category B Most Compliant in Benefit Payments Award at the 4th Annual Nasfund Employer Awards held last month at the Hilton Hotel in Port Moresby. This award as outlined by Nasfund, is given to employers depending on the amount of benefit payments made to an employee of an employer, the number of retirement savings account payments made to a member and the amount brought over from an RSA account annually by an employer. Chief Financial Officer of GDSS, Mr Wemin Kapia who was present to receive the award said that Guard Dog Security Services Lae continues to be a key financial player within the security industry and as such, remains committed to looking after its’ massive workforce, ensuring that benefits due are paid out in a timely manner and as accurately as much as possible. “Times are very tough and there are many economic challenges we are facing at present but as an employer of choice, our priority is also in looking after our employees as it is because of them that the company is able to keep moving despite of difficulties,” Mr Kapia said. Last year, GDSS Lae had paid out in excess of over K4.6M in benefit payments to its’ employees through the fund managers, Nasfund with most of these payments being processed seamlessly and with minimum process setbacks within the 2021 reporting period. Mr Kapia attributed this success to the hard-working back-office team and expressed his gratitude for the tireless efforts put into ensuring that the company has a clean record with Nasfund and that it continues to exceed contribution targets every year. “I must commend our back-office team, especially the payroll guys because they have been on their A game in the last financial year when it comes to remitting Nasfund entitlements and so this success is due to their hard work and commitment in getting the figures right every time without fail,” said Mr Kapia. Mr Kapia also assured that through these very trying and challenging times, the company will continue to move forward positively and will continue to offer its’ unique security services to its clients both corporate and private and will ensure that they continue to keep the good working relationship with their fund managers, Nasfund. According to the CFO, this is the second time GDSS Lae has scooped up an award at the Nasfund Employer Awards as they were also recipients of the Most Compliant award at the first annual awards hosted in 2018. The Guard Dog Group however has in total 6 companies, all of which are members to the Nasfund and contributing in excess of more than K700 000 per month in member benefit payments.

Over the weekend, the National Superannuation Fund (Nasfund) hosted its Leadership Workshop with the objective of finalizing its 2022 strategic objectives and KPIs for roll out during the year. The workshop, themed “Leading In the New Normal” was opened by Board Chairman Charles Vee and attended by executive management and leadership team of the Fund. Commenting on this workshop, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ian Tarutia reminded staff participants that it was an honour and privilege for them to serve the Fund membership. “Because of members, we all have a job.” The workshop was an annual activity that assisted the Fund leadership to focus on actions that improved the lives of members and grew their long term retirement savings. “Against a difficult operating environment in 2021, the Fund performed quite well. Our audited accounts are now being reviewed by external auditors, before our Board approves an interest crediting rate to our members for the 2021 financial year. While we await these final results, we will continue to work on achieving goals set out in our current 5 year strategy, which ends at the end of 2023. Through our overarching vision of being our members trusted superannuation fund providing quality service and financial security, each Division in the Fund will continue to progress initiatives under key strategic pillars of solutions, engagement, and innovation. To be the Fund of choice and remain the largest fund by membership we revised our strategy to include new offerings such as affordable housing and digital innovation to improve customer experience. We are servants for our members, and our decisions and actions must reflect this at all times. We are working hard behind the scenes to ensure that our services are being continuously improved, so that our members are ready for retirement when the time comes.”