James Marape and other members of parliament who defected from the People’s National Congress have accepted an invitation to join Pangu Pati.
One week ago, Pangu was effectively without a Party without a Parliamentary wing after 15 MPs resigned.
The only member who remained was Morobe Governor Ginson Saonu. He was appointed by the party council using provisions in the party constitution. It was the only way the party could remain relevant in any vote of no confidence motion.
Today, the interim Party Leader, invited James Marape and other former People’s National Congress Party MPs to join the Pangu. They accepted.
“Pangu Pati gave political Independence to PNG. Now, I invite them to come and help us give PNG’s economic Independence.”
In 21 days, Pangu morphed from an embattled, revived, pre-independence political force to a zero membership. Then today, it registered 21 members including James Marape.
Behind the scenes, MPs associated with Pangu have been trying to keep the party’s alive.
The primary reason has been the historical legacy of the party, its association with the founding father of Papua New Guinea and the fact that it represented a collection of leaders from all over the country during independence.
“The core belief of Pangu for uniting the nation is the same shared by all of us…Empowering the people…growing the economy,” James Marape said.
Going forward, James Marape says Pangu is better poised to take on future challenges as they prepare for the vote of no confidence motion.