Marape wants security contract cancelled

Posted by The National

PRIME Minister James Marape, pictured, has told Parliament that the controversial security contract awarded to a security company (not named) must be cancelled.
Marape, in response to questions from Northern Governor Gary Juffa, who wanted to know the position of the Government on the issuance of the controversial contract for A$423 million (K971mil) to the company, which was now a major controversy in Australia.
Juffa said the contract awarded to the security company under strange circumstances was subject to an inquiry in Australia.
He said the awarding of the contract did not even have an input from the PNG Government or the authorities responsible like the Immigrations Department and the ministry.
Juffa said: “It is about to be renewed, so what is the PNG Government’s position on the contract.
“Are we going to sit and allow foreign countries to come and dictate to us what their companies will do in this country?
“How are we going to handle this now that we have declared the phrase of taking back PNG, how are we going to deal with this and how are we going to manage this particular situation, especially when it is now being revealed in the Australian media that the awarding of the contract had some very strange circumstances whereby a foreign affairs employee, who was said to have influenced the awarding of the contract, is now working for the company?”
Juffa also asked why the PNG Immigration Department was not responsible for such a contract.
Prime Minister James Marape said that although Juffa did not name the company, it is a well known company in the public domain.
He said he had directed the Australian High Commission in the country to furnish a report to the Government at the earliest. “We don’t intend for foreign contractors who operate here in businesses like security, these are businesses that local companies can operate and engage in,” Marape said.
“I now ask the Australian government to stop this contract forthwith. I asked my Immigration minister and the Foreign Affairs minister to convey this to Canberra that we will not tolerate foreign companies engaged in business like security that national companies can be engaged in.
“And this arrangement to be reviewed in its fullest and wherever this contract is heading to is terminated in far as PNG Government is concern.”

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