The Australian High Commissioner His Excellency John Feakes and the New Zealand High Commissioner His Excellency Peter Zwart into the Mulitaka Disaster Site earlier yesterday . PICTURE SUPPLIED
By : Mortimer Yangharry
The Australian High Commissioner His Excellency John Feakes along with his New Zealand counterpart His Excellency Peter Zwart, in a show of great support, visited the Mulitaka Disaster Site yesterday.
The two top foreign diplomats visited the Pokolip Care Centre and the Mulitaka Health Centre, where the housing and rehabilitating of victims is being taken care by the Enga Provincial Government in attending to the management of the affected families with assistance from the United Nations, National Disaster Centre and the Papua New Guinea Defence Force respectively.
The ongoing challenges faced in rehabilitating and relocation exercises were also experienced first hand by the two top diplomats as they strategize ways to continue their country’s tremendous assistance in cash and kind since the first week of the disaster.
Both diplomats had a brief meeting with the Geohazard Technical Team from New Zealand and the Provincial Disaster Response Committee Chairman headed by Provincial Administrator Sandis Tsaka at the Provincial Headquarters Building in Ipatas Centre .
It was discussed during this special meeting that the landslip is continuing meaning the rock foundation and soil formation in and around the diaster area is still moving causing a huge riak of further landslides from time to time.
The expatriate geo technical team strongly suggested that there be a structural bypass erected at the back end of Mt.Mungalo Mungalo which will take some time.
Another workable suggestion was the relocation of people living along the impact corridor to somewhere else safer and more secure allowing an access road for mine and service vehicles to reach Pogera gold mine as currently there is on access into the golden valley.
Provincial Administrator Sandis Tsaka requested the Works Director and the Provincial Works Manager to assess what is best to meet the technical assessments put in by the New Zealand Geohazard Technical Team.
“Going forward the resettlement of this people is a massive exercise and the Provincial Government is determined to do so as per the advice from Geohazard Technical Team,” Tsaka said.
Mr. Tsaka is confident of the construction a road bypass soon for heavy machinery, service vehicles and other vehicles to have access into Pogera gold mine as the operation of the mine has been severely affected since the disaster struck the area two weeks ago.
