Monday, December 15, 2014

PM calls on detractors to engage in mature debate

Prime Minister's Media  

Ongoing positive reporting of Papua New Guinea’s economic growth and improvements in living conditions are changing the image of the nation around the
world, according to Prime Minister, Peter O'Neill.
He says the facts speak for themselves and there is no doubt that Papua New Guinea has changed from the “bad old days” when most reporting about the nation was negative.
O’Neill has further called on the Opposition and other detractors to play a positive role in nation building and not seek to undermine economic growth.
He said positive assessments in international media about growth in the nation, including a recent report by the Oxford Business Group, is changing the way people think about Papua New Guinea.
“Papua New Guinea is heading in the right direction because the country has put its faith in our government and the policy programme we have in place to improve lives,” O’Neill said.
“There is no doubt that we have an enormous amount of work still ahead of us, and the government is tackling these challenges in a careful and disciplined manner.
“Task-by-task, issue-by-issue we are dealing with problems that have festered through neglect over decades.
“We have placed an additional 800,000 children in school so that we now have 2,000,000 children receiving an education.
"These children are our doctors, engineers and leaders of the future.
“More people are have access to health care and this will keep our people alive for longer and hold families together.
“We have more police on our streets, more effective rehabilitation in our prisons and better funding for our judiciary.”
The Prime Minister said the New Year provides an opportunity for the Opposition and detractors outside the Parliament to participate in constructive debate on policy, instead of trying to run the economy down for their own political gain.
“As our country enters a new age I call on the Opposition to engage in mature and well-considered discussion about our growth and policy direction.
“I encourage and look forward to robust democratic debate and policy discussion, but let us see a new approach and work together for the future of our nation.”
The Oxford Business Group report provides an independent assessment of the Papua New Guinea’s economic growth and the policy approach of the government in
managing the economy, while also noting challenges to take into consideration.

(http://www.oxfordbusinessgroup.com/news/papua-new-guinea-steps-gas)

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