16th May, 2014 SERIES OF QUESTIONS BY THE DEPUTY LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION, HON. SAM BASIL TO MINISTER FOR STATE OWNED ENTERPRISE, HON. BEN MICAH. DEPUTY OPPOSITION LEADER, HON. SAM BASIL I would like to direct my questions so as to clear the air that as a responsible parliament we have to bring these issues up and I do not expect unnecessary point of orders and also Mr. Speaker I would like to advice the Minister, through your chair, that the questions that I am about to ask do not relate to the operations of PNG Power Ltd. We understand PNG Powers problems and woes. We are questioning the process, procedures and the confirmations. Mr. Speaker, my question is can the Minister tell the Parliament and the people of Papua New Guinea if there was in place a supply and purchase agreement between PNG Power and Israel General Electric or between the Independent State of Papua New Guinea and Israel General Electric for the supply of 2x26.2mw gas turbine generators when the NEC granted funding to the amount of K94 million on the 25th of February, 2014. Second question Mr. Speaker, is that the LR Group in a public advertisement on yesterday’s Post Courier on Page 36, stated that the K50m paid to it in December 2013 was a deposit on 2x15mw generators. Which it is claimed was later revised and upgraded to 2x26.2mw generators; do you confirm or deny this statement? Question three Mr. Speaker, Minister through the chair if the K50 million paid to the LR Group in December 2013 was deposited, then the K50 million plus the K94 million approved by NEC in February 2014 gives you a total, round off figure of K144 million. Do you therefore agree or disagree that the total cost of the 2x26.2mw generators are worth a total of K144 million? Question four Mr. Speaker, if your answer is in the affirmative, then why have you and the Prime Minister not disclosed to cabinet the K50 million deposit in the NEC submission that you both co-signed? Question five Mr. Speaker, can you also inform this parliament the reason why yourself and the Prime Minister as co-authors of the NEC submission did not disclose to cabinet the total cost of the two generators as actually being in the vicinity of K144 million and not K94 million as the cabinet was made to believe? Question six Mr. Speaker, and finally the Opposition has information that PNG Power is about to pay further K8 million allegedly for spare parts taking the grand total of the two generators to K152 million. Given this very large amount of public money for the two generators, can you tell this parliament and the people of Papua New Guinea why no public tender was called for competitive bidding? And finally Mr. Speaker, we understand that the Chief Legal Officer of IPBC, Mr. Erastus Kamburi is now writing to seek legal advice and legal clearance from the Attorney General’s office. Can the Minister Deny or confirm that during last week’s question time he lied to this parliament that legal clearance was sought. Thank you Mr. Speaker. STATE OWNED ENTERPRISE MINISTER: HON. BEN MICAH To give justice to these series of questions I ask that the deputy Opposition Leader put it on notice paper and I will reply to him in detail. Thank you Mr. Speaker.
Posted on: Fri, 16 May 2014 05:32:41 +0000
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