By JOE GURINA
PAPUA New Guinea needs to under-go a holistic review on the whole governance of its constitution in a more broad and consultative manner after fifty years of independence as a nation, according to PNG National Research Institute.
The PNG NRI made this call for the nation to take stock, after conducting studies and analyses on issues affecting the development of the country, notably the current deteriorating of good governance at the highest level.
While speaking at the occasion of the launch of PNG NRI Issues Paper. No. 43, authored by pollical scientist Michael Kabuni titled paper ‘’The Ineffective Dual Roles of Papua New Guinea Members of Parliament: Why it Matters’’, earlier this month, PNG NRI Director, Dr. Osbourne Sanida stressed PNG NRI’s role in its analyses and concerns on the issues of governance and its quest for a review on the constitution.
‘’We have been concerned about the many issues of governance, but the current deteriorating of good governance at the highest level, the weakness of our electoral system as observed at the 2022 National General Elections, the process through which we elect our representatives to the National Parliament, and as the many other concerns in the broader community gives us great concern. We think it is time for the nation to take stock,’’ Dr. Sanida said.
‘’In our view, PNG now need to review the whole mechanisms of Governance of our constitution in a more broadly consultative manner after nearly fifty years as an independent nation,’’ he said.
‘’We need to have a process for a national conversation bringing together the older generation drawing out from them, their aspirations, their dreams at the initial independence period. We need a process, a national process to have a more holistic review of our system,’’ he said.
He said this will include political and administrative leaders who crafted the national constitution and worked in government in the early years and were are still around, church and business leaders, community leaders and ordinary citizen that have contributed to the community and national development.
He thanked Kabuni for highlighting the need for a national conversation, since our young democracy was at stake.
‘’If we do not do anything soon, it will get even more difficult to fix and change as required,’’ he said.
He said few fundamental changes to the constitutions, relating to the roles and responsibilities of our representatives to the National Parliament is having serious implication for the country’s young democracy.
He said as Michael Kabuni pointed out, the changes to the Organic Law on Provincial Governments in 1996 and the abolishment of a separately elected provincial government system now had members of national parliament duplicating duties, holding offices as representatives to the provincial government legislative and executive government body.
He also stressed that the creation of the District Development Authority (DDA) in 2014, with the national MPs as chairs, taking up an executive role of government, undermines the very important oversight responsibilities of the National Parliament, when the MPs were taking up executive roles of government.
He commended the functions of the National Parliament in the early years of nationhood, including the parliamentary Committee System.
‘’Our founding fathers consulted widely and adopted a careful constructed constitution of Papua New Guinea. They pooled together a people of more than a thousand tribe to come together and live as one people, one country, agreeing to a representative Parliamentary System of Government. They created institutions of Government that have in the main performed very well in holding the nation state together and to govern for our collective well-being.
‘’Starting from a small group of well-educated persons in the modern sense of schools and educational institutions, we now have most Members of Parliament having university education. Many of our early leaders who had no formal education, were very wise, and they also contributed their knowledge and wisdom to nation building at the time’’ he said.
ENDS!
The other notable concern raised was the process in which representatives are elected to the National Parliament, as well as the many other concerns in the broader community that gives NRI great concern.
