By CYRIL GARE
WABAG Provincial Government support to a firm set up by former Wabag MP Samuel Tei Abal have been stopped to await the outcome of the court case instituted by Mr Abal.
Current Wabag MP and Chairman of the Wabag Joint District Planning & Budget Priority Committee (JDP&BPC), Robert Sandan Ganim, has put a stop to all funding and support to the Wabag District Rural Holdings Limited (WDRHL), a company created by Mr Abal.
The company has assets worth around K9 million with 100 per cent funding from the Wabag JDP&BPC since its inception in 2009.
Projects under the auspices of the WDRHL that will be affected include the Wabag
chicken project, new Wabag town market, the vegetable depot project, the
integrated Lakolam DAL, Police, health centre project and the Maramuni road
project.
Money spent but almost all of these work were half-done at the time of 2012 national general elections and the loss of Mr Abal (polled 17,030) and inception of Robert Ganim (polled 19,911/36,841) as new member for Wabag.
During a district budget meeting this week, Mr Ganim clarified this to the public servants and wanted the message passed on to the people of Wabag that he was doing this not because he wanted to but because of a current court litigation instituted by Mr Abal and his board of directors against him, the Wabag JDP&BPC and the Enga Provincial Government.
“It is a difficult situation, we stand the risk of interfering with the proceedings and affairs of the court if we act to the contrary of this litigation process which is current. It is primarily for this reason that we have decided to hold back funding and support for Wabag District Rural Holdings Limited until the court completes its process and arrives at a decision,” Mr Ganim said.
Money spent but almost all of these work were half-done at the time of 2012 national general elections and the loss of Mr Abal (polled 17,030) and inception of Robert Ganim (polled 19,911/36,841) as new member for Wabag.
During a district budget meeting this week, Mr Ganim clarified this to the public servants and wanted the message passed on to the people of Wabag that he was doing this not because he wanted to but because of a current court litigation instituted by Mr Abal and his board of directors against him, the Wabag JDP&BPC and the Enga Provincial Government.
“It is a difficult situation, we stand the risk of interfering with the proceedings and affairs of the court if we act to the contrary of this litigation process which is current. It is primarily for this reason that we have decided to hold back funding and support for Wabag District Rural Holdings Limited until the court completes its process and arrives at a decision,” Mr Ganim said.
On November 6, 2012, Mr Abal and his board of directors comprising mostly LLG
presidents in Wabag District took out an originating summons in National Court
against Mr Ganim, his JDP&BPC and the Enga Provincial Government from
interfering with the affairs and operations of WDRHL.
This matter will resume in Court on February 15, 2013 after an adjournment from late last year.
Meanwhile, Mr Ganim has brushed aside rumours that he was instituting an investigation into records of Mr Abal from years 2002-2012.
“Such a rumour is baseless and not true. I was not elected by grassroots people of Wabag to dig graves of anyone. I am here to do my job and that is to serve and deliver to the people of Wabag,’’ Mr Ganim said.
“However, there is interest in records of expenditure between the periods of June-August, 2012. This period was considered as the “election period” where substantial amount of money in district funds were expended in suspicious manner.’’
Mr Abal, son of a politician pre-independence days was deputy prime minister in the Somare Government.
This matter will resume in Court on February 15, 2013 after an adjournment from late last year.
Meanwhile, Mr Ganim has brushed aside rumours that he was instituting an investigation into records of Mr Abal from years 2002-2012.
“Such a rumour is baseless and not true. I was not elected by grassroots people of Wabag to dig graves of anyone. I am here to do my job and that is to serve and deliver to the people of Wabag,’’ Mr Ganim said.
“However, there is interest in records of expenditure between the periods of June-August, 2012. This period was considered as the “election period” where substantial amount of money in district funds were expended in suspicious manner.’’
Mr Abal, son of a politician pre-independence days was deputy prime minister in the Somare Government.
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