The morning rain surely did not stop all the rugby league faithfuls to gather around the Konedobu field in the city of Port Moresby to catch the start of the inaugural Dadi Toka Pepsi 9s rugby league cup challenge yesterday. The field was packed since 9am in the morning with fans, teams, and even the vendors.The Tournament Director Mr. Vaeke Vani, said we can expect more of this in the days to come. [caption id="attachment_18521" align="alignnone" width="600"] Dadi Toka Pepsi 9s rugby league cup challenge underway at the Konedobu field, Port Moresby. Picture by Emmanuel MAIPE[/caption] The tournament itself is massive with a total of 32 teams fitted into 48 pools. Yesterday saw 24 pools play while the other 24 will take the field today. As such Mr. Vani said this tournament could carry on past the three days as initially planned. “This game possibly might drag into the fourth day, which is this Sunday. But that depends on how the pool games will go,” he said. [caption id="attachment_18522" align="aligncenter" width="616"] Dadi Toka Pepsi 9's Cup Tournament Director Vaeke Vani at the inaugural tournament yesterday. Pic by Emmanuel MAIPE[/caption] Mr. Vani earlier this week said the finals were planned to take place on Saturday 22nd January following two days of pool games; however, all that could change. The teams currently participating in the tournament have come from as far as Kairuku in the Kairuku Hiri District, Papa and Lealea in the Hiri west and the rest from the Motu Koita villages and some from the suburban league competitions.

The long awaited inaugural Dadi Toka Pepsi 9s Rugby League Cup Challenge is set for a big start with a total of 28 teams already registered for the three days of matches that will take place next week in Port Moresby city. The Tournament Director, Mr. Vaeke Vani, said the teams come as far as Kairuku in the Kairuku Hiri District, Papa and Lealea in the Hiri west and the rest from the Motu Koita villages and some from the suburban. “We anticipate some good quality football from the teams that will be participating. We got some teams fresh out of the Moresby South tournament, teams from Hanuabada and even some players that have played in the Digicel Cup are expected to be playing in some of the teams,” he said. For the winning prizes, the Tournament Director said the Cup winner will walk away with K10, 000 and the runner up will go home with K4, 000. The Plate winner will take K5, 000 while the runner up to take K2, 000 and for the Bowl, the winner will take home K2, 500 and the runner up to take K1,000. There will be 8 pools with the pool games to be held on Thursday 20th and Friday 21st and the finals on Saturday 22nd. Unfortunately, Mr. Vani confirmed that this inaugural cup challenge will only see the men’s teams take part. Hopefully, next year should see the women’s division be included as well. The major sponsor of the rugby 9s challenge is Pacific Industries through the Pepsi brand. All the matches will take place at the Konedobu field adjacent to the Sir Hubert Murray Stadium.

The country’s consumer watch dog, the Independent Consumer and Competitions Commission (ICCC), has made it crystal clear that no PMV or taxi operator is to charge extra above the approved fares for 2022 announced by the Commission just recently. According to the Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mr. Paulus Ain, the ICCC can only determine the maximum fares from one end to another, and operators are allowed to compete by charging at or below the maximum fares set, but they cannot charge above these fares, and any operator charging above is in breach of the Prices Regulation Act. “Furthermore, it is impractical and inconvenient for the ICCC to determine the fares for every bus stop along a specific route, within an urban area. In the case of urban PMVs, should a passenger decide to get off somewhere in the middle of a particular route, then the PMV operator should charge at or below the maximum approved fare.” He added that by charging below, the PMV operator encourages healthy competition, which is good for both PMVs and commuters. He made this statement after the ICCC learnt that some PMV operators, particularly in Lae, went on strike after being confronted by commuters because of the increase in fares. He said adult commuters should pay the applicable and approved fare, while students pay the applicable fares as well as specified in National Gazette No. G888 of 2021. The applicable concessions are, half of the maximum fare for students up to and including those in Grade 10, three-quarters of the maximum fare for students in Grades 11 and 12, and those in technical and tertiary institutions. Meanwhile, the ICCC is aware of these recent complaints and concerns raised by the public regarding this and is therefore advising the public to report any instances of overcharging by contacting the Commission. The ICCC is working alongside the Road Traffic Authority and respective provincial administrations to continue monitoring the fares in the country. The adjusted PMV and taxi fares for 2022 commenced on 1st January 2022 after the new fares were determined by adjusting the 2021 fares in line with the changes in the monthly fuel prices for the respective centres, and the movements in the quarterly Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The public will soon know if the Independent Consumer and Competitions Commission (ICCC) will be giving any awareness to the public regarding the recent increases of the Public Motor Vehicle (PMV) and taxi fares in the country. According to the Commission, the CEO and Commissioner Mr. Paulus Ain, is expected to put out a notice on ICCC’s plans to disseminate information on the reasons behind the changes to the public. “The ICCC will be issuing a statement either by this afternoon or tomorrow on the step we will be taking in response to the queries.” This need to respond came about after the Commission was inundated with complaints and questions from consumers throughout the country on the recent hike in fares. The ICCC earlier announced that the maximum PMV and taxi fares for 2022 will increase on average due to the increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and the subsequent increase in fuel prices in 2022. The PMV and taxi fares are only applicable to the urban and non-urban routes approved by the Road Traffic Authority (RTA).

It is the New Year and the Port Moresby Australian Football League (AFL) Association is not wasting any time to get things rolling for the 2022 season after it had to cancel its' last season (2021) due to COVID-19 restrictions. The Association President Mr. Douglas Lai said his officials and club executives will meet early next week to put together a plan for the season. He is anticipating an early start to the games, and he is suggesting having a format of competition like the current Australian AFL format. “We should have the women’s competition first and later followed by the men’s competition instead of running the two together like the previous years.” He said one of the reasons for choosing this format was the fact that there is only one Colts Oval and with the COVID-19 situation, organizing the games with both divisions on at the same time, could be a handful. Meanwhile, the 2022 Season for the Port Moresby AFL competition should have enough funding to see it run at least toward the end of this year. According to the president, the remaining 2021 funds from sponsor Moni Plus, is still available. An amount between K11, 000 and K15, 000 is available but an addition amount could be sourced towards the end of the year for the finals.

The Bina Primary and Elementary School has joined the rest of the rural dwellings and institutions in Central province to connect to the Port Moresby power grid after PNG Power Ltd made the connection with the support of the New Zealand government. This will now for the first time see the continuing and new students that will be attending the school in Galoma village next year, be learning in a school that has full electricity supply instead of using the old school generator from time to time whenever it is needed. The Principal, Mr. Baena Tau, said the electricity service provided by PNG Power Ltd through its Rural on Grid Extension Project (ROGEP), will boost the school’s performance in a big way going forward. “The children will learn new things, especially with the changes taking place in education, they should be updated more through the use of new technology,” he said. He added that the access to electricity will also enable the school administration to run copies of tests and assignment papers, and other documents for the school in time using printers and copiers. Not only that, it will enable teachers to also work during nights to mark papers and prepare lessons for students. Now that the school has received electricity, the principal also indicated that its time the school administration and board look at the plans to elevate the school’s status to a day high school in the near future. Mr. Tau later thanked PNG Power for making all this possible for his school and the village. Meanwhile, the ROGEP already covered three areas in Central province with Hula being the final area to cover under the project. More than 5, 600 rural dwellings, including Aid posts, schools, churches, businesses, and homes in the province are planned for connection and of that total, 2, 688 have already been connected while about 3, 207 more are yet to be connected between Galomarupu and Hula. According to PNG Power, the other areas covered already are Kwikila, Sabusa/ Brown River, and Owers’ Corner. The project’s goal is to provide economic and social benefits to rural areas of the Central province through the supply of electricity with increased access to clean, efficient, and affordable energy. The ROGEP is supported by the New Zealand government through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade with a 20milllion New Zealand dollars funding to enable PNG Power to deliver the project in Central province in supporting the National Government as well deliver its aim to achieve 70% electricity coverage by 2030.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) will continue to be a strategic location for investment in the resource sector given that the Asian markets are expected to increase their demands in energy and raw materials into the future. That was the assurance given by Prime Minister (PM) James Marape to stakeholders, investors, and potential resource sector investors at the very recent 2021 Mining and Petroleum Conference & Exhibition. Marape said PNG’s location is strategic that world class resource companies like ExxonMobil and Total have invested in the resource sector here, but probably the most important is the expected expansion of the Asian markets in the next 10 to 20 years and on ward into the future, where demand will increase for resources. “Papua New Guinea, with close proximity to the Asian marketplace, is a very exciting place for investment,” said PM Marape. He said PNG with its good relationship with countries like China, Japan, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines can supply oil and gas and raw minerals to their markets to meet their demands. As such, this poses a good opportunity for investors in the resource sector. Therefore, he added that by investing in PNG, they can expect good returns on their investments going into the future. The PNG Mining and Petroleum Conference & Exhibition provides comprehensive technical updates and offers an excellent opportunity to meet all the players in the PNG resource industry, including the government, and for joint venture discussions, networking, and promotions. The event also informs delegates on current activities in the PNG resource industry and highlights new developments, advanced prospects, new discoveries, and exploration as well as economic and social achievements. This year’s event, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and certain travel restrictions, was virtually staged from Brisbane, Australia with speakers and participants connecting in from different locations to join and participate in the Conference. PM Marape participated from Port Moresby on the 01st of December.

A lot will be spent on the cost of the public service if the public service structure is not better managed by the government. This was the suggestion put forth by former Prime Minister and Member for Ialibu Pangia Peter O’Neill, when debating the 2022 National Budget in parliament today. Mr. O’Neill said the K13billion allocated to maintain the operational expenditure in the 2022 budget, which also covers the public service expenditure, is way too high. “In fact, it is more than what the revenue that the entire country got in 2021 to go to maintain public service structure,” said O’Neill. “Real wage has not gone up, but public service machinery is increasing at ten per cent or around ten per cent every year. He said the real reforms are not being introduced like stopping recruitment, retiring the aging population in the public service because all these things need to be done so to cut the cost. “We need to relook at that so we can pull back this expenditure that is blowing out of proportion.” O’Neill concluded by saying that this matter will need everyone’s effort to address it by reducing the cost of public service structure. Picture courtesy: Parliamentary Media Services

The theme of the 2022 National Budget is “Lightening the Burden,” but some of the measures to take in the projected revenue of K16.1billion, could add burden to the people. One such measure is the introduction of the Banking Levy of K190 million, which is considered to impact people, especially the contributors of superfunds. According to Mr. Andrew Oaeke, the Acting Deputy Secretary Economic Policy of the Department of Treasury, there are a set of revenue measures that will be used to get that revenue in 2022. “They are categorized in three areas of Revenue Raising, Revenue Policies to Promote Fairness and Equity, and Enhancing Tax Administration and Compliance. There are thirteen of them, but we are categorizing them into three broad areas,” he said. Of the three areas, the introduction of the Banking Levy along with the introduction of Telecommunication Levy, comes under Revenue Raising. The Association of Superannuation Funds of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is one party not in favour of this introduction of the Banking Levy, saying it would hurt the contributors in the end. In a statement, the association said that this decision will affect Bank South Pacific Group (BSP), whom superannuation funds on behalf of ordinary workers and taxpayers are major investors and shareholders and claim that this new banking levy will result in a decline in profitability, dividend payments to shareholders and a decline in BSP’s share price. “We are cognizant of the Government’s endeavours to raise more revenue internally and will support initiatives that achieves this objective but not at the expense of our members, the ordinary workers of this country who are already doing it tough. Retirement savings with the Superfunds are the only real means of financial protection workers have.”

Local Australian Football League (AFL) players will have the chance to represent the country in the national teams when the PNG AFL Commission hold the national championships next year to select potential players for the teams. According to the AFL Senior Football Operations Manager, Mr. Rex Leka, the selections for the train on squads for both the male and female teams should make way for the teams to participate in the 2023 AFL International Cup in Australia. Mr. Leka said the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the selections in the past two years with competitions having to postponed or even cancelled in some regions. “Basically for the outside centres, most of the competitions were in the high risk regions and they had to cancel the competitions when the National Control Centre issued out the measures and instructions, “said Mr. Leka Nevertheless, the AFL body is looking at hosting the national championships in 2022. Even with the pandemic still on they are optimistic about things ahead and will be looking at applying different formats of the game and to also ensure matches are played under strict health protocols. He added that a previous list of the train on squads was put together in 2019 in anticipation of the International Cup set for 2020, but due to covid-19 in the following year, that list has been disregarded and a new one must be made.

The government has put together a budget of K22.1billion with a focus on health, education and law and justice sectors. Treasurer Ian Ling-Stucky when presenting the budget, said these three sectors are vital at this time duet to the need in these sectors in the provision of service in all sectors of the community. [caption id="attachment_17096" align="aligncenter" width="605"] Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey presenting the 2022 National Budget in parliament. Pic credit: Parliamentary Media Services[/caption] Education got the highest of 45% of the budget, and health 43% while law and justice 2.9% of the budget. Meanwhile, the total budget for 2022 is 9.3% higher than the 2021 supplementary budget. Secretary of Treasury Dairy Vele, added that the Revenue envelop for 2022 is K16.1billion, 18.4% higher than the 2021 supplementary budget, while the budget balance is at K5.1billion deficit, 5.9% of 2022 GDP. "It is the best possible plan we have with what is happening around us," he said.

PNG Power Ltd (PPL) is taking steps to put a stop to illegal connections and power theft by moving towards implementing something new that is being used by other countries in the world. PNG Power General Manager Retail, Mr. Kingston Albert, said the new devices should be brought into the country next year upon which PPL will commence roll out with the installations. “We are looking into installing smart meters with SIM cards in them and if there is tampering done, the system itself will automatically notify us,” Mr Albert said. “So, we are going towards that direction. Many countries have taken that path and we are also taking that path and we are already in the tender and evaluation stage, so that should be coming in soon,” Mr Albert added. Mr. Albert said the new smart meters are expected to reach the country by early 2022. “We should start to replace big meters like those in manufacturing, shops and supermarkets. All of these should start to see smart meters installed by next year,” Mr Albert said.