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Kairuku-Hiri will split this year

CLIFFORD FAIPARIK

THE vast and rugged Kairuku-

Hiri electorate in Central with

over 125,000 people is expected to

be split before the 2022 national

elections, MP Peter Isoaimo says.

“We have people living along the

coastline, rivers and mountains in

our huge 10,215km square land

mass. I’m happy now that the electorate

is set to be split,” he said.

“In fact it was supposed to happen

in the January Parliament sitting. But

there were some discrepancies in the

Electoral Boundaries Commission

(EBC) report which was not from us,

but in the other electorates. It was to

do with land mapping, land demarcation

with the National Mapping

Bureau. And so the reports were sent

back to EBC again.

“But it will come back again in the

February 18 sitting. The EBC Report

has already been vetted by the National

Executive Council and Government

Caucus and sent back to the

EBC. It will come back and this time

will go straight to the floor of the

Parliament.”

Isoaimo said that when he became

the MP during the by election in

2014, he has always advocated for

this electorate to split.

“Our electorate is vast unlike

Goilala (38,000 people), Abau

(56,000) and Rigo (45,000) with

lesser population and smaller landmasses,”

he said.

“In Kairuku-Hiri we have a population

of 125,584 and so we qualify

for another electorate. This is why I

had been advocating since I came in

for split in this electorate.

And I’m happy to announce that

we got the Government’s attention

and the EBC had done their round. I

gave my concern for the split in this

electorate because it’s just impossible

for one person to be serving two

districts (Kairuku and Hiri) altogether.”

Isoaimo said that: “We all get the

same District Service Improvement

Program money (K10 million) but in

my case I have to split between two

districts unlike Goilala Abau and

Rigo. So for us to achieve tangible

developments, it’s impossible.

“We even submit for Public Investment

Program funding but there

is lot of politics played inside. And

I’ve done the best as we could. To

move around this electorate, I cover

all modes of transportation.

In North Mekeo I go on the river

by boat for six hours, in Mt Koiari I

go by helicopter or small plane if that

village I want to visit has an airstrip.

In Hiri west coast areas I go by sea

by boat and the rest of the electorate,

I travel by car. But with little that

God bless us with we try our very

best to bless as many people as we

can.”

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