By Bridgette Komatep – EM TV, Port Moresby
Power was out for an hour during the grievance debate in parliament this morning, forcing Leader of Government Business and Tari-Pori MP, James Marape to adjourn parliament to 26 May.
Along the corridors of parliament, concerns were raised by parliamentary staff on the lack of money for fuel for the backup generator. Some staff were not paid their salaries.
This did not go down well with members of the Opposition, who called a news conference to address these issues. They included Opposition Leader Don Polye, his deputy Sam Basil and Kikori MP Mark Maipakai, who was there to show his support.
The news conference was held outside as it was dark inside parliament. The Opposition leaders were of the view that Papua New Guinea’s parliament house is an important, iconic building that should be respected and, in this case, have diesel available for the standby generator.
Opposition Leader Don Polye and Deputy Sam Basil also touched on the recent MOA signing between the state and ExxonMobil for the supply of gas for power generation.
Mr Polye and Mr Basil still were not convinced that the deal would address power problems faced by Port Moresby and Lae.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZvxUcC6cy44%3Ffeature%3Doembed%26wmode%3Dopaque%26showinfo%3D0%26showsearch%3D0%26rel%3D0
