By Simon Eroro
EMPLOYEES of the Papua New Guinea National Forest Authority (PNGFA) are now calling on the Minister for Forestry Salio Waipo and the PNGFA Board to set up investigations into the organization.
The call by the employees for investigation into the conduct of their top management was raised when this newspaper enquired into the department when it came under the radar, this time as one of the most politicized government organizations in the country.
“We want the Minister to move quickly to direct the chairlady of the National Forest Board (NFB) (Ms. Faith Barton) to immediately convene Board Meeting,” their spokesperson said.
They raised allegations of corruption, financial mismanagement, organizational mismanagement and fraud, coupled with widespread PNGFA staff discontentment and the level of nepotism and irregularities in the dismissal of existing and appointment of new staff in the pretext of recruiting new staff for the new divisions created in the organization are massive.
This newspaper has been reliably informed of the occurrence inside PNGFA, which are contradictory to many calls made by notable leaders in recent times to cut down on the ever-increasing public servants throughout the country which is eating away bigger portion of the country’s budget annually.
Documents received confirms almost doubling the size of the organization from the originally approved six divisions by the Department of Personnel Management (DPM) to 10 divisions with potentially one or two more new divisions planned to be included.
“This has been done without the approvals of the DPM under PSM Act and Department of Finance under the PFM Act, gross negligence of financial management, thus giving rise to serious budgetary and funding implications.
Its adverse effects on prudent management of the organization and its scarce internal resources, which gives rise to increased levels of bottlenecks, organizational performance inefficiency and depressed organizational productivity levels.
Such an unwarranted and huge organizational structure – the white elephant – created only enhances more inefficiency, diverts attention or focus on achieving organizational goals and thus elevates resource wastage.
This new white elephant created also deviates from the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2006 as it will consume significant levels of the Government’s limited fiscal or budgetary resources (with commensurately far less organizational productivity), which should otherwise be put to good use in the social sector (health and education).
The new positions created under the new divisions have been mostly filled by his close associates, family, friends and relatives, thus amounting to massive nepotism and discriminatory employment practices.
This is leading to widespread staff discontentment, which is affecting staff morale and their job performance and productivity,” they said.
“Allegations of double-dipping and extraordinarily and exorbitant incurring of expenses of PNGFA finances outside of PNGFA budget in purchasing new expensive vehicles, engagement of hire vehicles, and other expenditure areas, some of which were mentioned in this brief.
Massive engagement of friends as consultants in various sections of the organization in positions that do not require consultants. Engagement of consultants, under the Forestry Act can only be approved and engaged by the Board under exceptional circumstances.
Approvals were never sought for the engagement of these consultants, who are superficially and erroneously being paid allegedly ranging from five figures a month. This amounts to extravagant expenditure, misappropriation and fraud of limited finances of the organization.
This historically unprecedented and massive level of expenditure incurred by the top management who are so infatuated with recklessly spending money, with little attention or focus on actual organizational work productivity, requires the urgent attention and intervention of the appropriate authorities to arrest this despicable style of management demonstrated.
Issuing threats and intimidation to staff not to raise concerns on his organizational management misdemeanors, where some have been either suspended or demoted while others terminated,” they said.
Another boiling issue raised by the employees was the decision by the top management (named) to set up what they famed as fraudulent inhouse committee on Log Export Development Levy (LEDL) to defraud a part of the 2 percent administration levy against the LEDL that is intended to fund operations of PNGFA related to administration and management of the LEDL.
Allegations are that, the 2 percent levy has been used to fund the sitting allowances of members of the inhouse committee made up of senior officers (named) made up is outright defrauding of PNGFA organizational finances.
