Papua New Guinea’s General Election 2022 nominations start today
News that matter in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea’s
General Election 2022 nominations start today
PORT MORESBY: Nominations are finally expected to get
underway today and at least six seats, where incumbent Members of Parliament
(MPs) had died in office, will see new faces.
The seats are Kerema,
Middle Fly, Middle Ramu, Central Bougainville, Goilala and the most recent,
Bulolo.
In addition, Papua New
Guineans will also be elected MPs for eight new seats in General Election 2022
(GE22).
Electoral commissioner
Simon Sinai told The National
yesterday (May 18, 2022) that nominations for the 22 provinces (governors) and
96 MPs for GE22 would begin at 8am in the 118 centres nationwide.
PNG Cyber Monitor reproduces below a few news updates on GE22 as reported by The National:
Nomination Day
May 19, 2022The NationalMain Stories
NOMINATIONS are
finally expected to get underway today and at least six seats, where incumbent
Members of Parliament (MPs) had died in office, will see new faces.
The seats are Kerema, Middle Fly, Middle Ramu, Central Bougainville, Goilala
and the most recent, Bulolo.
In addition, Papua New Guineans will also be electing MPs for eight new seats
in General Election 2022 (GE22).
Electoral commissioner Simon Sinai told The National yesterday
that nominations for the 22 provinces (governors) and 96 Members of Parliament
(MPs) for GE22 would begin at 8am in the 118 centres nationwide.
“GE22 has officially started. The election writs had been issued by
Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae last week but out of respect for the tragic and
unexpected passing of Deputy Prime Minister Sam Basil, acceptance of
nominations were delayed,” he added.
“We have dispatched the writs to all 22 provinces and the 96 electorates and
returning officers (ROs) will start accepting nominations starting from 8am to
4pm tomorrow (today).
“Nominations will close at 4pm next Thursday (seven-day nomination period),” he
added.
Sinai said polling would start on July 2 and end on July 22 with the Returning
of Writs from July 23 to 29.
“Let me reassure our people that the various political parties and candidates,
stakeholders and everyone else that the general election is on schedule to be
delivered as per the requirements of the Constitution and the Organic Law on
the conduct of GE22.
“I am confident that by working together, we will deliver a fair and just
election result that our country expects and deserves,” he said.
Sinai said a general election was not just the business of the Electoral
Commission.
“It is the police and everyone’s business. Papua New Guineans must behave and
cooperate with the authorities to deliver a peaceful, free and fair GE22.
The eight incumbent MPs who died in office in the 10th Parliament (GE17) are
Sam Basil (Bulolo May 2022), William Samb (Goilala March 2022), Sam Akoitai
(Central Bougainville December 2021), Johnny Allonk (Middle Ramu November
2021), Roy Biyama (Middle Fly September 2021); Richard Mendani (Kerema March
2021), Moresby North West – Sir Mekere Morauta (Moresby North-West 2020) and
Thomas Pelika (Menyama 2019).
Menyamya and Moresby North-West elected new MPs in by-elections.
The eight new electorates up for grabs are Delta Fly (Middle Fly), Hiri-Koiari
(Kairuku-Hiri), Popondetta (Ijivitari), Nakanai (Talasea), Wau-Waria (Bulolo),
Komo-Hulia (Komo-Margarima) and Porgera-Paiela (Laigap-Porgera).
May 19, 2022The
NationalMain Stories
Covid-19, STI a concern during general
election: WHO
Nominations open for
Bulolo seat, says Sinai
May 19, 2022The
NationalMain Stories
Bulolo MP, who was also Deputy Prime Minister, Sam Basil and his close
protection officer Neil Maino, died in a motor vehicle accident along the
Bulolo Highway in Morobe last Wednesday, on the eve of the issue of writs for
the general election.
Sinai said that out of respect for the deputy prime minister, the Electoral
Commission had put off nominations for a week.
He said they also had to postpone to give ULP, who was a partner in Government,
to reorganise after the death of their party leader.
URP had announced that it would be endorsing one of Basil’s sons to run for the
Bulolo Open seat.
Meanwhile, Sinai said the nomination was a fixed date and those who wanted to
contest must come forward and nominate.
He said that writs for the Hagen Open and the Porgera-Paiam Open seats were
already issued and nomination for both will begin at 8am today like the rest of
the country.
“We must understand that election affects lives and the decisions we make will
also affect lives, so we will go ahead with the nominations in both areas.
“If you want to contest, go to the nomination site and nominate, the returning
officer will be available to take your nominations from 8am to 4pm.
Meanwhile, Eastern end police commander Rigga Neggi said candidates who wished
to nominate should only bring one witness with them to the provincial
administration office to nominate.
“If they have been endorsed by a party, then one representatives from the party
can come with the candidate and his witness.
“But cars and supporters will not be allowed to go with the candidate,” he
said.
Neggi said that for the other seats in Western Highlands, they will nominate at
their district offices.
Covid-19, STI a concern during general
election: WHO
BESIDES its concern for a
Coronavirus (Covid-19) surge during the general election, the World Health
Organisation (WHO) is raising alarm about the spread of sexually transmitted
infections (STI).
Officer in-charge of WHO Papua New Guinea Dr Anup Gurung said traditionally in
PNG there was an increase in HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and STI during
the election period.
He said it was important to have awareness messages targeted at youths at this
time.
Condoms, he said, should be made available to youths as well.
Dr Gurung was emphasising on the need to have HIV, STI and Covid-19 awareness
messages reaching youths because they were the group of people who would be out
in numbers at campaign gatherings and houses.
He said young people had to ensure they practised the Niupela Pasin when they
returned home to protect their family, especially the vulnerable one – the
older people and those with underlying medical condition.
“The more people gather in a crowd and the longer people interact with each other,
the greater the risk of Covid-19 spreading,” Dr Gurung said.
Namah’s application dismissed
May 19, 2022The NationalMain Stories
JUSTICE Derek Hartshorn says a
one-man Supreme Court bench does not have the power to stop an act of
Parliament that has already been enforced.
He said this yesterday when dismissing Opposition Leader Belden Namah’s
application to stop the Parliament’s decision of adding seven new electorates
and the Electoral Commission to proceed with the general election with those
seven electorates included.
“Although there may be some serious constitutional issues raised, especially at
the peak of the general election, the order sought by Namah would have caused
confusion in the preparation of the general election,” Justice Hartshorn said.
“If a stay is granted, the general election will be delayed and all of the
consequences and problems would resolve into chaos,” he said.
Electoral Commissioner
Simon Sinai (left) greeting Governor-General Grand Chief Sir Bob Dadae after
the issue of writs at Government House in Port Moresby last Thursday. –
Nationalpic by NICKY BERNARD
Justice Hartshorn said the application by Namah was
dismissed for those reasons and in the interest of justice.
He added that the application was inconsistent with the rules and laws applied.
Namah through his lawyer Greg Sheppard sought the order on the grounds that the
constitutional boundaries of the seven newly – added electorates would be
affected if the general election proceeded with it. Sheppard said the
application sought was to preserve the constitutionality of the electorates as
they were before it was redistributed and approved by Parliament on March 22.
He further submitted that John Igitoi’s appointment as the acting national
statistician was done in a wrong manner which made National Statistics report
unreliable.
“The parliament made the decision to create those electorates on that
unreliable statistics provided based on estimated figures,” he said.
Solicitor-General Tauvasa Tanuvasa, representing Attorney-General Pila Niningi,
submitted that the application should be dismissed as it was incompetent and
abuse of process.
“Namah’s application sought will to create a chaotic situation for the whole
country,” he said.
“Orders of that nature have the potential to further defer election which may
lead to create issues,” he said.
Tanivasa said the court must consider the requirement of the law in which the
application sought must meet in order to be competent.
ROs ready for
elections
May 19, 2022The
NationalMain Stories
NATIONAL Capital
District (NCD) election manager and provincial returning officer Kila Ralai
says he and his team are ready to accept nominations from today.
“After receiving the official bulletin from Electoral Commissioner (Simon
Sinai) yesterday, I have given the directions to the returning officers (ROs)
to go ahead and conduct readiness awareness with intending candidates to come
forward,” he said.
“I think one week is sufficient for candidates in their various locations to
place nominations.”
Ralai reiterated that intending candidates for Moresby North-West should show
up at Ipi Park, Hohola; Unagi Oval for Moresby North-East; Sir Hubert Murray
Stadium car park for Moresby South and Sir John Guise Stadium for NCD regional.
“In the previous week, I was expecting one nominee (Governor Powes Parkop) but
now I haven’t heard anything from anyone, we are yet to establish so we’ll wait
to see (today),” he said. According to Ralai, all other electorates are
prepared and will get ready to set up in the morning waiting to accept
nominations.
“After the nominations the ROs will declare the nominations closed and the RO
for each electorate, will then inform the candidates or their representatives
when to do the order of draw or when they get their candidate number,” he said.
ROs for each of the four electorates in NCD are: Tau Toea for Moresby South,
Billy George for Moresby North-East and Vincent Manukuasi for Moresby
North-West.
“Anyone could show up by tomorrow and in the one week of nominations, so we are
prepared for that. I really don’t have a number or list of who to expect,” he
said.
Ralai urged intending candidates to nominate within seven days and:
- TO bring with them their forms
29 and those contesting under a political party their form 30;
- NOMINATION fee deposit slips;
and,
- THREE passport size photos of
the intending candidate.
Kale urges candidates to show leadership
A SENIOR police
officer has urged candidates to exhibit the highest standard in behaviour
during the general election as an example to their people.
Acting Assistant Commissioner of Police and Highlands western-end divisional
commander John Kale appealed to intending candidates to work with law
enforcement and their supporters to ensure violence, threats, intimidation and
unethical behaviour were prevented.
He told The National that candidates could help the process by not mobilising
their supporters which could easily lead to violence or cause difficulty to
control.
Kale said this would be crucial throughout the electoral process from
nomination to polling and counting.
He said if candidates were raising their hands to represent their people in
parliament then they needed to show a level of leadership and sensibility
befitting a national leader.
Kale also reminded police personnel to carry out their duties responsibly and
ethically and not compromise their integrity.
He warned that any officer found to have behaved improperly or broken any law
during the election period would be disciplined or dismissed.
“We must maintain our neutrality and perform our duty with the highest faith
and trust,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kale commended Enga police commander Chief Inspector Epenes Nili and
his men for arresting and charging two police officers involved in smuggling
two guns into Porgera last week.
“Their actions are a disgrace to themselves, their families and their
communities,” he said.
“They have tarnished the reputation of the police force and they can lose their
jobs.”
Electorates are ready to receive nomination.
Allow election to be free, fair and safe, says
Parkop
PAPUA New Guineans
must promote a free, fair and safe general election, National Capital District
governor Powes Parkop says.
“The nation’s capital must show the example to inspire the country by behaving
civilly to uphold democracy,” he said.
“Let everyone exercise their democratic and constitutional rights.”
Parkop said a general election was a serious exercise in electing leaders who
will guide and represent the people for the next five years.
“It is important that we take this exercise seriously as the decision we make
today will not just define our lives now but also in the years to come,” he
said.
Parkop appealed to candidates and supporters, and their parties to put the
interest of the people, the city and the country above self-interest.
“The quality of leadership starts now and that leaders must show their
leadership qualities now and not only after they are elected,” he said. “The
elections in our capital city has been relatively safe and we should be proud
of that, and uphold that tradition.”
Do not overload vehicles, says Ikumu
NATIONAL Capital District Metropolitan
Superintendent Gedion Ikumu has urged candidates and supporters to be mindful
of traffic rules before going for nominations today.
Ikumu said candidates should inform his office and the election manager
responsible before they go to nominate to avoid inconveniences.
“This would allow the police to guide them in terms of managing the crowd and
traffic” he said.
Ikumu said overloading vehicles could lead to accidents which may cause fights
and riots.
Ikumu said considering the Coronavirus (Covid-19) surge leading to the
elections, opportunists could use the time to cause trouble.
“Candidates should be responsible as potential leaders and make this a
beginning to show their leadership,” he said
Ikumu said the candidates should manage their supporters and be observant of
the laws by avoiding situation that could lead to trouble during the nomination
to poling period.
He said police would be conducting their business as usual on crowd control and
traffic management.
“Police have been notified to look out for overloading vehicles causing
inconvenience to motorists, pedestrians and the travelling public,” he said.
“We urge candidates to manage their crowd which could help the police control
traffic.”
Ikumu said road construction along the Waigani Drive had caused enough traffic
congestion which travellers and candidates should consider.
Police operations in the National Capital District started last week after
Governor-General Sir Bob Dadae issued the writs, Ikumu said.
He said police units had been on the ground mobilising resources and planning
for today’s nomination.
“Units on the ground involves the planning and administration teams, the crime
and investigations division and intelligence division,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ikumu said all hired vehicles would be without tints and would be
marked according the locations of each deployed units.
Power taken away from
ROs
May 19, 2022The
NationalMain Stories
RETURNING officers
(RO) will no longer have the powers to dispute ballot boxes in this year’s
general election, says Electoral Commissioner Simon Sinai.
Sinai told The National yesterday that the Papua New Guinea
Electoral Commission had removed some of the powers of returning officers.
“There have been so many issues identified in the past election due to the
commission giving our returning officers too much power,” he said.
“So the commission will now retain some powers to avoid too many issues in this
year’s election.
“The office of the electoral commissioner will be the only one who disputes
ballot boxes.
“Ballot boxes will only be disputed after a full report is given to us, the RO
will have to justify why a ballot box is been disputed.”
Sinai said this was because there were many unethical practices that had been
normalised.
“For example, in part of the country, a box may be disputed because of underage
voting, where as in another part of the country, underage voting is part of the
norm and will not be disputed,” he said.
“This is why ballot boxes will only be disputed after approval is received from
the commission and not by the returning officer as we want to deliver a free
and fair election.”
Meanwhile, Sinai called on candidates and parties to be mindful of the
Coronavirus (Covid-19) safety measures during the nomination and campaign
period.
Schools urged to avoid election trouble
Students from Catholic
agency Det Junior High School in Nipa-Kutubu, Southern Highlands, at a morning
assembly. Teachers have been told to be neutral and focus on their teaching
during the general election. – Picture supplied
TEACHERS at Catholic
agency schools in Southern Highlands and Hela have been told not to take part
in any election-related activities that would have serious consequences in the
future.
Catholic schools secretary Daniel Beli said he had warned teachers during his
visits to schools to concentrate on teaching and be present for the polling
only.
He said election in the Highlands sometimes became violent, resulting in family
separations, conflict with tribes and communities and these could affect
schools they were teaching at.
Beli said there had been past reports of teachers skipping classes or being
absent that affected students learning and he wanted school boards of
management to communicate with their teachers not to take part in
election-related activities.
“Whoever candidate wins is our elected MP, we must stay focused on our teaching
profession,” he said.
“It is a sessional thing and our profession must be taken into consideration.
“Teachers must understand that we place a strong emphasis on teaching
fundamental skills to improve the quality of learning and teaching and
nourishing our students physically, mentally, socially and spiritually.”
Dual citizens ineligible to contest elections:
Sinai
INDIVIDUALS with dual
citizenship are not eligible to contest this year’s general election, Electoral
Commissioner Simon Sinai says.
Sinai said all candidates who wished to nominate needed to have exclusively
Papua New Guinean citizenship, be at least 25 years old born in the electorate
they wish to run for, or lived there for the last two years or a total of five
years at any time.
Meanwhile, he said anyone caught destroying, defacing or forging a nomination
paper would be arrested and charged and face up to two years imprisonment.
“With nominations set to begin tomorrow (today) at 8am, I call on all
candidates, their supporters, voters, electoral officials and the public to
adhere to and abide by the electoral laws and regulations and to not take part
in illegal practices and electoral offences during nomination,” he said.
“Ensuring the integrity and credibility of the elections is the responsibility
of all electoral stakeholders, not just of the PNG Electoral Commission.”
Sinai said all electoral stakeholders, especially the political parties,
candidates, and their scrutineers and supporters, played a critical role in
making elections free, fair and peaceful.
“Let’s all work together, take ownership of this election and work to deliver
the kind of election that our people deserve, one that is free and fair.”
Province to impose liquor ban over election
period, police say
THERE will be total liquor ban in Eastern
Highlands during the election period, says provincial police commander
Superintendent Michael Welly.
Welly said necessary preparations for the ban were underway between the Eastern
Highlands government, provincial liquor licensing office and the police.
He said police expected liquor dealers to cooperate with authorities because
people wanted to see a smooth election process.
“There is not much time left for the election, the people would like to see
their representatives elected on time to represent them in the 11th
Parliament,” he said.
“In order to ensure smooth flow of the election process, we will impose a total
liquor ban in the eight districts of Eastern Highlands.”
Welly also pointed out that liquor had been singled out as a major contributor
to law and order problems.
He said therefore, during the election, liquor trading and consumption would be
banned.
Welly, however, expressed fear for the production and sale of cheap liquor with
high alcohol content.
He called on members of the public to report those involved in selling and
consuming such alcohol and police would deal with them.
Welly, however, said beverages could be served in licensed hotels.
Officers to vote this
time
May 19, 2022The
NationalMain Stories
THERE are concerns
that police personnel assigned for general election security operations may not
get the opportunity to cast their ballots, Border commander Assistant
Commissioner Peter Philip says.
“From my own experience, I have not voted in all the general election as
policemen and officers do not remain in one place most of the time,” he said.
“We move from one location to another. “It is a sad reality that most
policemen, soldiers and Correctional Service (CS) officers would normally miss
out on casting their ballots,” he added.
He said most security personnel were deployed in various parts of the country
during a general election and their names may not be registered for voting in
the location where they were on duty.
“Some 10,000 police personnel are deployed for security operations in this
general election.
“This is a very big number of voters who may miss out on voting,” he added.
Meanwhile, Deputy Police Commissioner (Operations) Anton Billie said there
would be a special arrangement with the Electoral Commission to ensure that all
security personnel get to cast their ballots before they were deployed for
general election security operations.
“All security personnel, including 1,000 soldiers and 500 CS officers, have
been told to give their names to their respective commanders who will then pass
the list to me to arrange for them to vote during this election.”
Billie also said that in past elections, most of the security personnel did not
cast their ballots as they were deployed to provide security in other provinces
and that had been a concern.
Mendi police call for orderly electoral
process
SOUTHERN Highlands
police commander Chief Inspector Daniel Yangen says all candidates and
supporters should behave during the nomination and polling period.
“The attitude of people moving in groups to support the candidates must stop
because it is disturbing for others,” he said.
“The candidates should now know the existing laws in place and must control
their supporters so that they do not break the laws like overloading vehicles,
shouting and disturbing the peace and even drinking on moving vehicles.”
He said candidates needed to behave like leaders and start educating their
supporters to behave sensibly.
“I want a peaceful week of nomination and also during the campaign period,” he
said.
“We all must now know how to respect each other.”
He urged regional candidates coming to Mendi town to pay their nomination fees
to ensure order and respect from their supporters.
“The candidates who will be contesting are all well educated people and they
must be leaders during these time to help the police to talk to their
supporters so they do not disturb others.”
Yangen said peace and order needed to be maintained in Mendi town during this
crucial period in order for businesses and other services to operate for the
benefit of the people.
Eastern Highlands people urged to follow
electoral laws
Eastern Highlands
provincial police commander Superintendent Michael Welly speaking to his police
personnel at a recent election briefing in Goroka. – Nationalpic by ZACHERY
PER.
By ZACHERY PER
EASTERN Highlands
police commander Superintendent Michael Welly has warned people in Eastern
Highlands not to interfere with the electoral process.
“Take ownership of the electoral process to elect your representative to the
Parliament to represent you,” he said.
“We are up against time as there have been two deferrals for nominations.
“We are against time, stop wasting time to frustrate the process.”
Supt Welly told The National in Goroka yesterday that Eastern Highlanders had
limited time to deliver nine members of parliament, including a governor, to
represent them in the 11th National Parliament.
He called on candidates and their supporters to cooperate with staff of the PNG
Electoral Commission, security forces and relevant agencies like the provincial
government to speed up the process to have representatives elected ahead of the
return of writs.
“My security operations started with massive awareness on electoral processes and
laws to the people.
“We started at Mangiro in Daulo district at the border with Chimbu to Kassam
Pass in Obura-Wonenara district at the border with Morobe,” he said.
He said some of the key messages delivered in the awareness were on separate
polling booth for women, warnings against intimidation and suppressing and
forcing voters to vote for particular candidates.
He said police and the security forces will also be there to ensure voters
exercise their constitutional rights to vote freely.
People urged to behave responsibly during
elections
By JIMMY KALEBE
POLICE in Lae and
Morobe will be on high alert during the nomination period, Assistant
Commissioner of Police (ACP) Northern Peter Guinness says.
He said police were ready to provide security and maintain order during the
general election and cautioned the public to behave responsibly during this
time.
“Candidates and their supporters during the nomination must abide by the laws
in place; police will not hesitate to arrest and charge those deemed to have
breached any election laws,” he said.
While making the statements, ACP Guinness could not confirm when exactly the
nomination for Morobe would take place, taking into consideration the passing
of Deputy Prime Minister Sam Basil.
He said with Basil’s passing, the level of threat to election activities in
Bulolo and Wau-Waria may have risen and this was something police would closely
monitor.
Guinness urged all citizens, intending candidates and supporters to respect
each other and to use common sense.
“We ought to respect each other and do it right for everyone’s benefit. Do not
be selfish and cause inconveniences right from the nomination period through to
the returning of writs.”
Meanwhile, Guinness also appealed to the public in Morobe to behave well when
the province received Basil’s casket in the province this week.
“Police will be on high alert when the body touches down at Nadzab Airport, all
the way to Lae and other programmed activities.”
He advised Morobeans to be respectful and mourn sensibly.
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