BSP Financial Group Limited (BSP) has reopened its Kerema sub-branch on 6thSeptember, 2021, after eight months of shutdown since 14th December, 2020, following  breaking and entering of the branch.   On 12th December, 2020, the BSP Kerema sub-branch was broken into by criminals with approximately K220, 000 in cash stolen. As a result of the theft, the sub branch was closed for all most 10 months to allow for police investigations to be carried out and for recovery of as much of the proceeds of the robbery as possible. BSP also had to carry out repairs to improve security at a cost of more than K200,000, with the Gulf Provincial Government providing financial support for the repairs and upgrade of security. In reopening the sub branch, BSP Group CEO Robin Fleming said, “while BSP is pleased to return and resume services for the people of Kerema and the Gulf Province, this is the third instance where BSP has reopened doors due to theft and robbery at the local branch. Any further criminal act against Kerema branch will make it difficult for BSP to once again consider re-opening the sub branch.” “BSP sub branches in rural areas are increasingly becoming frequent targets of criminal activities, which not only cost money for BSP to repair the damage caused but also puts the provision of banking services at risk for customers who rely on BSP in their local communities,” said Fleming. He added that: “BSP is the only bank that has representation in Kerema, no other banks are willing to offer services in this province, or many other areas in PNG. We call upon the people of Kerema to support and look after the bank facilities that provide essential banking service for the community.” BSP Kerema is one of the 21 locations in PNG where BSP is the only bank operating and withdrawal of services would have a detrimental impact on the community. Not only does the bank provide banking services but also investments in supporting the development of the township through its annual community projects in health, education,  sports, culture and Financial Literacy.  Despite the cost associated with running 42 branches and 42 sub-branches, BSP is committed to expand and extend its services to cater for the number of customers it has. Proof of its commitment to its customers was the recent opening of a larger sub-branch at Namatanai, New Ireland Province, in July. The bank is actively working to open new banking centres in Eriku, Lae, and in Mt Hagen to cater for its high number of customers.    The Kerema sub-branch reopening its doors on 6th September, 2021, will provide essential banking services once again to the people of Gulf.  The Bank is calling on all stakeholders, the local community to take care of the branch and its staff as it is the only bank willing to serve the people and residents of Gulf Province.

Chef Julz Henao and Australian High Commissioner Jon Philp recently joined Papua New Guinean volunteers from the High Commission to prepare and taste traditional dishes from PNG’s four regions to celebrate Independence Day. After some taste testing, the team delivered the dishes to Cheshire Homes in Hohola, where more than 30 people living with disabilities and staff gathered for an Independence Day feast. In true PNG style, all four dishes featured coconuts (and lots of scraping). Representing the Highlands region, Willie Koi prepared a Western Highlands Mumu, cooking a whole pig marinated in ginger, garlic, onion, carrots and green fern in coconut milk. For the Momase region, Michelle Alung-Megiarni and Josephine Barrum prepared Nangu, a sago dish served with smoked fish and greens in coconut milk. The Southern region’s Delsia Sariman prepared Rabia Irara, a coconut creamed trevally in sago. Finally, Charmaine Sialis-Misiliu represented the New Guinea Islands, using heated stones to make an Aigir of chicken, aibika leaves, capsicum, bananas, and you guessed it… coconut! High Commissioner Philp enjoyed all of the dishes prepared so much he could not pick a favourite. “Papua New Guinea is the land of a thousand tribes. What better way to recognise that than to celebrate the food of Papua New Guinea. We know that every island, every valley, every province, every tribe has their own special food, and their own way of cooking things” he said. The High Commissioner even tried his hand at some of the steps in the cooking process but noted there was some room for improvement. “Clearly, I need to build my skills a bit more before I can make a perfect saksak dumpling ball like Josephine, but I’ll get there.” High Commissioner Philp thanked Chef Julz for coming along to help out on the day. “Our volunteer cooks from the High Commission worked very closely with Julz Henao, an amazing chef who has worked very hard to help educate the people of PNG about healthy eating, something that’s very important to us in Australia as well.” Chef Julz is currently working on the Eat Smart campaign, a nutrition education program for PNG. “The Eat Smart Campaign is the first of its kind in PNG. We’ve travelled to the regions and met some amazing farmers, and we’re going to be sharing nutritional education with the next generation of Papua New Guineans and school kids,” he said. Chef Julz said he was inspired by each of the local cooks, and the way they incorporated new cooking methods into traditional dishes. He was also proud to be able to share the healthy meals with the Cheshire Homes community. “It was really special to come to Cheshire Homes and share that moment with our fellow Papua New Guineans. Just to serve some food and sit around and talk while the community ate their Independence Day meal was very rewarding,” said Chef Julz. To conclude the event, High Commissioner Philp wished all Papua New Guineans a happy Independence Day with their families and friends.

NCD Governor Hon. Powes Parkop has called on all the city residents to dress in National Colours of Red, Black and Gold on this 46th Independence Day celebrations on September 16th. With momentum gaining for the actual celebration, he said National Capital District Commission (NCDC) had already dressed the city’s street light poles along selected major roads in the city with the National Flags. As the Governor of the City and the Chairman of the Municipal Authority, Mr. Parkop said that the city is ready to commemorate the nation’s 46 years of Independence. “Despite the limitation and challenges in light of the Covid- 19 pandemic in the city, we must be reminded to remain united as one city and one people with one future to celebrate our resilience, celebrate our pride and significance of our national sovereignty of our city of 1000 tribes,” said the Governor. He added: “As we commemorate our 46th Anniversary, I urged all the residents and the commercial property owners throughout the city to dress the exterior of their premises with PNG flags and do also dress in the red, black and gold colours”. He commended some who have already responded positively to the call. Governor Parkop also said: "Whilst the result of this collective effort to this call for the City Wide Independence Dressing, we will make the statement of Patriotism that will echo throughout the length and breadth of this land, igniting inspiration, aspiration, peace and unity amongst our people.” “It is equally important to acknowledge that as our nation enters into a new era of our sovereignty, and we will begin our journey without the guiding presence of our Late GRAND CHIEF SIR MICHAEL THOMAS SOMARE, the father of our nation. "As we commemorate its 46th years of Independence, may we also reflect on his leadership, honour his legacy and celebrate in oneness,” said Parkop.

The Central Provincial Government today paid up their registration to participate in the Southern Regional District Youth Games to be held in Alotau, Milne Bay Province from November 29 - December 8th 2021. Acting Provincial Administrator Francis Koaba presented a cheque of K5000 to Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation National Youth Sports Coordinator John D’siguria. Koaba said the among the five pillars that the Provincial Government has set up, one of them is to establish Sports in the province with an emphasis on Rugby League in the Province. He said with the recent acquisition of the Central Dabaris Rugby League franchise and the Central Dabaris Football Club, the provincial government has plans to ensure the development of talent within the province is retained and properly managed not only for Rugby League and Soccer but for other sports like Netball and others. He said Iarowari Secondary School has been identified as the academy for Rugby League while Kwikila Secondary School has been earmarked to host the Soccer academy. Acting Advisor for Community Development Mr. Henry Kavana also added that the districts participation at the games will be a stepping stone for talents from their districts to be identified at that level to be sponsored sent to an all-expenses paid academy training within the province. Mr. D’Siguria advised that so far 90 percent of the districts in the Southern Region have confirmed their participation with Oro Province being the first to complete all their requirements followed by Middle Fly, North Fly and South Fly from Western Province, followed by Kerema and Kikori District in Gulf Province. Abau and Rigo District in Central Province are yet to compile their registration while Esaála District from the host province, Milne Bay have completed their requirements with the other three districts to follow.

Two veterans sealed a season of hope with for the SP PNG Hunters with a try to end a quality 30-18 Intrust Super Cup victory over finals-bound Tweed Seagulls at Bycroft Oval today. Prop Stanton Albert had three Tweed tacklers hanging off him in the 71st minute when he freed his arm to pass to playmaker Ase Boas for a try that pushed the Hunters clear of the Seagulls. The visitors gained a late try but this was a game that belonged to the Hunters. Gilmo Paul and Emmanuel Waine scored in the opening 15 minutes to lay the foundation for a Hunters team desperate to finish strongly in a season that has featured the Intrust Super Cup debut of 12 players. That experience will stand the Hunters in good stead next season with the green shoots coming through in impressive wins in recent weeks over Northern Pride and Tweed, which both entered the last round in the top eight. The Hunters brought the strong crowd to their feet today with some classic moments of flair. Boas chipped and regathered in the 60th minute when Tweed expected him to drive a clearing kick down the field. He found a flying Wane for a try that will be among the season’s highlights. Boas also landed a rare 20-40 kick that caught Tweed by surprise while another raid through the centre of the field, including two regathered chip kicks, almost resulted in a try. This was the Women in League round and PNG coach Matt Church paid tribute to the wives and partners of his players who have remained at home while the Hunters have been based for almost seven months in Queensland. “There has been a lot of sacrifice this season from everyone involved with this campaign including those who remained at home,” Church said. “I couldn’t be prouder of this team for how they finished off the season. We spoke about wanting to get on the plane home being proud of how we finished the season. We did that today by playing probably our most complete game of the year. “So much has happened and we’ll take a lot of benefit from this season.” The Hunters applied pressure through a kicking game highlighted by Boas’ 20-40 kick which was believed to be the first of the Intrust Super Cup season. The ball rolled to the Seagulls’ 20-metre line such was the length of the kick. The Hunters also caught the Seagulls by surprise on the stroke of halftime with a clearing kick that would have put them in prime attacking position if not for the siren. “We wanted to apply that pressure today and we managed to do that at important times,” Church said. “And there were also some great moments of attack that helped us. We tend to play well in front of big crowds and we had plenty of supporters today that we wanted to thank.” The Seagulls entered the game as one of four teams tied in places second to fifth, desperate to win to claim a top-four berth. They trailed 20-4 at halftime but clawed back the margin with a try in the 53rd minute. But Wane’s try from Boas’ chip-kick gave the Hunters a handy margin and a chance to take a deep breath as their season wound to a close. SP PNG HUNTERS 30 (Emmanuel Waine 2, Gilmo Paul, Epel Kapinias, Solo Wane, Ase Boas tries, Boas 3 goals) bt TWEED SEAGULLS 18 (Lee Turner 2, Lamar Manuel-Liolevave, Will Brimson tries, Tevin Arona goal) at Bycroft Oval.

The Grand Papua Hotel in Port Moresby is a proud winner of two International Hotel Awards in the Asia Pacific region for 2021/2022. The Asia Pacific Hotel Awards recognizes and celebrates the hotel industry worldwide, with votes cast by travelers, guests, and industry players. It is the first year the Grand Papua Hotel has entered the Asia Pacific Hotel Awards and we are proud to have been awarded the following: Best City Hotel for Papua New Guinea Highly Commended Award for Luxury Hotel category for Papua New Guinea “It is a prestigious milestone for the Grand Papua Hotel to be recognized as a world class Upscale Hotel providing a high-end product and services in Papua New Guinea”. Says Robert Cohen – Hotel General Manager of the Grand Papua Hotel. Grand Papua Hotel is situated in Port Moresby’s Central Business District, and offers 161 upscale guest rooms, suites, and residences. The Hotel was built in 2011 and continues to provide a high standard in its products and services for business travelers and corporate guests who want an upscale hotel experience with friendly service. The Hotel General Manager Robert Cohen explains: “We continue to take pride in giving our guests reasons for coming back not only to Grand Papua Hotel but also to Papua New Guinea and Port Moresby – this award is dedicated to all our employees and guests” The Grand Papua Hotel boasts an upscale setting and guest experience with the Grand Brasserie, 15th Floor by Chef Krisna, Grand Bar, and Grand Café, Grand Spa, and the Executive Lounge located on the 15th Floor.

The Gerehu Secondary School will be hosting an inhouse pre-independence celebration on Wednesday the 15th of September to mark the country’s 46 years of Independence. Expressive Arts teacher Ms Elizabeth Tandoa said the event will not be opened to the public as in the previous years due to the COVID-19 restrictions they must observe for this year. “This event is only for the students from this school, however we can make an exception for parents to join us but it won’t be open to the general public.”  Ms Tandoa said her expressive arts students will also be performing a unique dance among other activities planned for the day. “My expressive arts students, we have decided to come up with a piece titled “United Rhythm” showcasing Papua New Guinea.” “Basically, in the dance piece, there are 22 provinces accommodated in the choreography and each student is depicting a dance from each of the provinces.” She said the dance will represent the four regions of Papua New Guinea with “Unity” being the main message behind the dance.

The Lae Snax Tigers created history this afternoon at the Oil Search National Football Stadium in Port Moresby when they added yet another Digicel Cup title to the club’s winning history thus crushing the JPG Waghi Tumbe's dreams of a historic Grand Final win. The boys from Asa Sumba land came out in the first half with a mindset on winning and did not waste time in bagging the side’s only three tries in the first half which saw them walk away with their 4th championship title since entering the Digicel Cup in 2013. 3 minutes into the first half, the Tigers first try was scored by half-back Jerry Teme with a failed conversion by five-eight Jamie Mavoko thus opening the scoreline at 4 points to nil. As the Tumbes looked into efforts to even up the scoreline, the Tigers through winger Max Vali scored their second try in the 13th minute with a successful conversion by Mavoko, bringing the score to 10 nil. The Stanley Tepend coached side capitalized on their excellent set plays and ball handling with the forward packs making the hits through the Tumbe’s defense which saw their side scoring their last and final try of the 2021 season in the 17th minute through centre Lynol Molpoya. The Waghi Tumbe came up fighting with a first grand final try 25 minutes into the first half by half-back Job Kar with a missed conversion locking in the points at 16 points to 4 in favor of the Lae Snax Tigers. For the remaining minutes till half-time, it was a tussle between the oldies and the newbies as the young Waghi Tumbe side did all they could to close in on the gap thus were rewarded in the dying seconds of the first half, with a try by centre Valentine Wamdi and a successful conversion by David Joseph. At half-time, the scores were locked in at 16 points to 10 with both sides unable to score further tries in the second half as the ball was tussled to and from each of the try lines. In the end, it was the Tiger’s experience campaigners in the likes of Junior Rop, Rex Yallon and Roy Kela that put in the hard yards in ensuring that the defense line for the Tigers was dead set thus giving the Tumbe’s no opportunities to even the scoreline. When the full-time siren went, the boys from the Lae Biscuit Sponsored side had the last big dance as they re-claimed the cup from last year’s cup holders, the Kroton Hela Wigmen. This by far will be the Tiger’s highest winning scoreline compared to their 15-4 win over the same team in the 2019 Digicel Cup Grand Final. The Tigers have won 2 other Grand Finals over the Agmark Rabaul Gurias in 2016 and 2017 with scores of 14-8 and 11-10 respectively. Coach Tepend who was overjoyed at his team’s victory said that this year’s competition has been the most satisfying in that most of his boys left for Hunters duties however, he is so thankful for the boys that stayed who have worked hard towards achieving this premiership win. “Most of the boys left for the Hunters however, I am happy with how the boys have worked hard to get this far in winning the premiership title.” Tepend said overally, he is pleased with the boys’ performance this year and is looking forward to what next year will bring for the team.

Britain's Emma Raducanu has completed a Grand Slam fairytale, with the 18-year-old becoming the first ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam title. She beat Canadian Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in the battle of the teens to be crowned U.S. Open champion. Raducanu is the first British woman to hoist a major trophy since Virginia Wade triumphed at Wimbledon in 1977. The first Grand Slam final -- men or women -- to be contested by two unseeded players was an improbable matchup that no one could have predicted, featuring 150th-ranked qualifier Raducanu and little-known Fernandez, ranked 73rd. All the more remarkable was that Raducanu's march to the title required 10 matches, including three wins in qualifying, and she did it without dropping a single set along the way. Raducanu threw herself to the floor in disbelief as she fired down an ace to conclude what has been the most remarkable journey. Raducanu served for the match at 5-3 but cut her leg as she went break point down, leading to a medical time-out and a clearly irritated Fernandez expressing her frustration to the match official. However, Raducanu shrugged off the delay, saving a further break point before closing out her third championship point. The two shared a warm hug before Raducanu headed up the stairs at Arthur Ashe Stadium to celebrate with her support box. She will take home $NZ3.5m in prize money, rise to 23 in the world rankings and will become the British number one on Monday. SOURCE: RNZ NEWS

Cases that made news headlines involving crimes against women and children that were either dismissed or given compensation payments as a form of sentencing by the courts will be reviewed and appealed before the Supreme Court. Justice Minister Bryan Kramer made this known in Parliament on Thursday when asked by Oro Governor Gary Juffa. Governor Juffa in his series of questions asked Minister Kramer if the Department of Justice is considering conducting reviews in the criminal prosecution and the justice system amidst the growing trend of what he called “the breakdown in justice system.” Minister Kramer in response said even though the Public Prosecutors Office lies outside of the Justice Department’s jurisdiction, they’ve had talks to review those cases and establish the reasons. “ The reviews are to establish if it was a case of poor investigations, insufficient evidence or possibly an error in the judgement,” Mr Kramer said. “From there, considerations will be made for those cases to be brought back to the Supreme Court for appeal.” Kramer added that there are reforms currently undertaken by the police minister and the Justice Department to align their work in addressing those issues however specific details will be made known in other sessions of Parliament.

The National Government has been called on to ensure the National Parliament is given its share of funding in the upcoming national budget. National Parliament Speaker Job Pomat sounded the call on Thursday in Parliament in light of a request for a parliamentary committee to immediately commence investigations into the procurement of a controversial medical drug that has resulted in several fatalities last month. Mr Pomat said in his last four years as Speaker, successive governments continue to overlook the Parliament’s budget that he presents in the annual budgets. “Over the years, the Parliament’s budget that I present to the executive government annually according to law were never met,” Mr Pomat said. “All the Parliamentary Committees are not functioning because of this reason.” “I’m asking that the upcoming budget must be inclusive of Parliament’s share as it is an arm of the government, in fact the first arm of government,” Mr Pomat stated.

Students from the Buk Bilong Pikinini (BbP) Learning Centre at 6 Mile celebrated the International Literacy Day on Wednesday by thanking PNG Air for their support for the last 3 years. The students presented “When I grow Up” books to the PNG Air Team. “PNG Air assists with the re-establishment library kits where schools across Papua New Guinea have received books for their libraries,” said the Executive Officer, Ms. Leanne Reeson. Ms Reeson said that so far 68 schools and learning centres across the country have received over 40, 000 books. She added that not only does PNG Air support BbP with freighting the library kits, they also support with the training and up skilling of the BbP staff from the outside provinces. Meanwhile, the Acting Chief Commercial Officer, Ms Nancy Nakikus thanked BbP for allowing PNG Air to partner with them. Ms Nakikus said PNG Air likes to encourage young people to aspire to reach their goals. PNG Air will be delivering the “When I grow Up books” to over 24 destinations that they cover with their air services.