NEW DAWN ON BOUGAINVILLE

240516 POLICE TO CONFISCATE EQUIPMENTS
By Tom Kathoa
Home Brew Manufacturers are warned of the possible arrests if caught by police.
Head of the Bougainville Community Policing division, Lesley Meten says once the police finish their general awareness in constituencies anyone found brewing the substance will be arrested and charged.
North Bougainville Community Policing division, Inspector Spencer Aili also says police bail has been increased as deterred to would- be illegal brewers.
Police is very concern about the breakdown of law and order in the communities as a direct result of liquor and other alcoholic beverages.
He explained that police bail is different from court bail and only the courts has the power to order how much police bail should be depending on the offence committed by the offender.
Police are currently out awareness in the six constituencies in Buka. They have yet to cover, Halia, Hagogohe, Peit and Tsilato constituencies.
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240516 PANGUNA MINE PIT A TOURIST ATTRACTION
By Tom Kathoa
The giant Panguna Mine Pit left behind by the Bougainville Copper Company`s (BCL) closure is an impact tourist attraction.
This is according to the Director of the Bougainville Office of Tourism, Mr Lawrance Belle who is currently in Central Bougainville conducting tourism awareness in the region.
Mr Belle speaking from Arawa where his team will spend a week awareness there.
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240516 BUKA NCOBA OFFICE SET UP
By Tom Kathoa
Moves are afoot for the establishment of an NCOBA office in Buka according to the Bougainville Affairs Minister and the Regional Member for Bougainville, Hon Joe LERA.
Minister Lera since becoming minister has vowed to make the presence of NCOBA felt by the people of Bougainville who were supposed to be served by the office.
At one stage, Mr Lera described the office as an elephant, overstaffed, but with little or nil input or effect to the development of Bougainville.
Instead of the office working and operating as middle face for the ABG it has failed to do so.
He said the creation of Buka office will help to move things a lot faster working together with the Port Moresby office with shared manpower.
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240516 REMEDIAL COACHING
By Tom Kathoa
The Bougainville Department of Personnel Management and Administrative Services have already began remedial coaching of Public servants to prepare them of the aftermath of not being able to reemployed by the government following the advertised of positions.
The Acting Chief Secretary, Paul Kebori says currently all public servants are now unattached following the advertisement of their positions.
Mr Kebori said the government`s concern now is what to do with officers who may not be re- employed in their current positions or in another capacity.
He said those who will not be re- employed would be greatly affected and the government has to find ways to help them.
And, one way is to inform them now to be prepared of the consequences of not being able to re- employed by the government.
The first lot of 239 key positions is on the open market with applications to close on this Friday, the 27th May 2016.
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240516 VOTING DATE FIXED
By Tom Kathoa
Preparation for the conduct of the Bougainville Referendum have received a breakthrough with the fixing of the date for the conduct of the vote.
In his weekly radio brief, the Acting Chief Secretary for the Bougainville Public Service and the ABG Administration, Mr Paul Kebori said last week`s JSB Meeting in Port Moresby has fixed the 15th of June 2019 as the date for the conduct of referendum vote.
However, there are still minor details to be addressed before confirming the date, but as it stands the ABG and the awareness committee now has a time frame to work towards.
The date was agreed to by leaders of both the National and the ABG Government during their recent meeting in Port Moresby last week.
With June the 15th 2019 fixed as the day for Bougainvilleans to vote for their political future, the ABG Government and the people now have to work hard to achieve some of the things stated in the Bougainville Peace Agreement.
These are weapon disposal, increased human resource capacity and the improved economic and financial capacity.
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240516 PM NOT BOWING DOWN TO STUDENTS` DEMAND
By Tom Kathoa
The Prime Minister, Peter O`Neil says he will not resign from his position a prime minister.
The Prime Minister announced his decision in response to the university students` call for him to step aside over a number of issues affecting the country.
Students from three Universities namely Goroka (UOG), the University of Papua New Guinea and the University of Technology(UNITECH) in Lae, have been boycotting classes for the past three weeks.
The students have said their last resort would be mass- withdrawal from their studies, but the prime minister has appealed to them to return to classes saying the government and their parents have invested a lot of money in their education.
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230516 WOMEN ATTEDANCE GOOD
By Tom Kathoa
A good number of women physically took part in the Copra awareness workshop conducted in Central Bougainville last week.
The training conducted at Bove of Manetai and Numanuma had 16 women each who wanted to learn the best methods of harvesting and preparing of copra for sale.
All in all at total 54 women attended the awareness as opposed to their male counterparts of more than one hundred.
The women raised a lot of informed questions and suggestions about the best methods of drying copra to meet standards.
There were also suggestions that all copra farmers should have a standardised copra dryers and ensure grading of copra reintroduced in the region.
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230516 A SUCCESSFUL AWARENESS
By Tom Kathoa
An awareness Campaign on copra production facilitated and funded by Copra Exporting Company,
Tambolema and jointly run by Kokonat Industri Korporesin and Department of Primary Industry has been described as very successful.
The one week awareness and training was conducted in selected places in the Central Bougainville last week.
Research Officer with New Dawn FM station, Mrs Helen Teviri who is one of the facilitators described the awareness as successful and challenging.
Mrs Teviri said many copra farmers who attended the sessions were very impressed with the knowledge they gained from the workshop and further said it was very informative as it was the first time ever in years in the area of copra.
The awareness training covered all areas of copra production ranging from planting, processing, transportation of dried copra product for sale.
Meanwhile, a challenge has been issued to other private stakeholders in the same business to follow the fine example by Tambolema in assisting the government with such program activities at this point in time when the government is facing money problem.
All the cash crops products are not the sole job of the government to maintain, but a share responsibility including the farmers and producers towards economic recovery.
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230516 PEOPLE FIRST NOT SELF
By Tom Kathoa
Public Servants have been reminded of their responsibilities as servants of the people and the government of the day.
Minister for Public Service, Hon.Raymond Masono challenged current public servants and candidates for the advertised positions to put the interest and welfare of the people as priority number one.
As servants their self interest and quest for money must be secondary to that of the people and the government.
Meanwhile, the closing date for positions for applications have been deferred to the 27th of this month.
Minister Masono said the government has advertised more than 230 positions that should be filled and occupied by July after the selection committee completes screening of applicants and makes its recommendation.
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230516 ONLY LOCALS SHOULD BE ENGAGED
By Tom Kathoa
A former ABG Government Minister says he wants to see all alluvial mining activities in the region to be strictly done by the local people only.
And, the former Commerce Minister, Wilfred Komba is calling on the ABG Government to come up with a policy to protect the local people from competition by outsiders.
Mr Komba said the community around areas where alluvial mining is being carried out have become mere spectators and are missing out on the benefits from their own resources.
He said a tough law must be enacted and be put in place to make it illegal for outsiders to come and mine or even buy gold or whatever resources from the region.
He wants to see illegal miners and buyers pay heavy fines and other stiffer penalties for their actions.
The former minister claims that Bougainville has already lost more than K70 million to outsiders who are involved in the alluvial Mining industry.
Meanwhile, the same figure of K70 million has also been mentioned by another concern leader from Torokina area of South Bougainville.
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