MPs told to have time for electorates

Most Members of Parliament in Papua New Guinea are looking for “greener pastures” overseas and they are forgetting the people who mandated them to bring back much needed services.

These were the remarks from Bulolo MP Sam Basil (left)following queries from villagers at Zenag village in the Mumeng local level government (LLG) area during the commissioning of seven coffee pulpers last week.

Mr Basil told a huge crowd that fellow politicians were sending their wives and children to reside in Australia, New Zealand and overseas countries and were not in the country from time to time.

“Politicians are buying properties overseas and they are sending their family to stay there. Their children are attending schools and wives are treated at the best hospital.

They use the good roads, communication and health systems,” he said. “These politicians do not feel the pain the people feel due to lack of proper education and health facilities including good roads and proper law and order. When they are on the floor of Parliament, they pass millions of kina on unrealistic projects just to suit the needs of their cronies and their own.”

Mr Basil said a politician should always have time for their electorate so they can witness for themselves the sufferings of their people and initiate impact projects that would change the lives of the people. He said this was not happening in many electorates in the country.

Mr Basil some of the politicians were there when he was still at school and they were still maintaining senior portfolios, making decision on “hearsay” and artificial research provided by so-called advises who were their own cronies.

“All those propaganda on multi-million kina projects in PNG are just mere talks. In reality, all those millions will go through thin air and no one will know what had happened to those monies.

By FRANK RAI of the Post Courier

*** This kind of situation is common among all politicians and it goes to show that all of these people prey on the folks in the villages to create their empires for them and their families and cornies. This is pure selfish, greed and arrogant for MPs who swear to be responsible to deliver much needed goods and services to the villages where ninty-five percent of the population of PNG live.

Their empty promises and mere rhetoric are always prevalent during election campaigns to lure votes especially those in the villages were majority are illiterate. Had Papua New Guineans learnt something out of these scenario for the past years? Vote in people who put the people's interests first above theirs and who can have time to visit electorates to listen to folks who need help.

Vote in folks you see associate well with you so that they can represent you well in parliament so that tangible delivery of goods and services will be visible at your backyard. Let's make 2012 a year of change.

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