Robert@PNG

I was on my way to the weekly Rotary meeting earlier this evening when I bumped into a couple I know from Eli's village. We chatted briefly and I asked them where they were going (as one does in PNG). They told me that they were headed to the house of a candidate to collect some cash - no cash not vote they said!!

Sad but true. Votes in PNG are bought, either with cash or favours. And folks wander why the country ends up with corrupt politicians that end up doing more harm than good. Interestingly, on my way back from the Rotary meeting I happened to notice a hoard of folks outside this particular members home. Certainly doesn't take genius to work out what they were all doing there.

This incident tonight has prompted to post a few election related stories appearing in the press today:

Less than half vote

LESS than half the eligible voters in the Lae Open
electorate voted during the one-day polling on Saturday.
Out of the 60,000 eligible voters whose names are on the Common Roll, only about
23,000 voted.
But election officials are intent on getting a result from those 23,000 and
started counting yesterday morning.
Most of those that missed out live in settlements and villages on the fringes of
the city, where security considerations meant an early stoppage of polling.
Returning officer Roy Kamen said the low return of votes resulted from delays in
the start due to rain and also confusion over where people were supposed to
vote.
Voting at the 55 sites started at 10am and was stopped at 6pm.
“Many people missed out, but 23,000 is a fair figure from which we should get a
result,” Mr Kamen said.

Candidate arrested

A RIGO open candidate has been arrested by police
for spreading false rumours against another candidate.
Hume Maru, 46, from Saroa village, Rigo district, has been charged with two
counts of spreading false reports and defamatory statements against former clerk
of Parliament Ano Pala.

Two deaths reported in Central polls

POLICE in National Capital District and Central
Province reported two deaths over the weekend when polling began.
But both deaths, according to police, were not electio- related.

Enga voters’ list could spell trouble

By PETER KORUGL and PETER PIA
THE problematic common roll in
Enga province could spark trouble among the voters who are going to the
polls today.
This was the biggest concern among the province’s election managers as
the names of eligible voters have not been listed in tribal or clan
groupings like in previous elections.
Provincial election manager Henry Kyakas said the list of names in the
common roll in this election had been arranged in alphabetical order
which could be confusing for clan voters.
“And this could spark trouble among the voters,” he said. “They are
listed in alphabetical order and the names are all mixed up. This is
confusing for the voters.”

Common rolls to stay as they are, says
Trawen

By ELIZABETH MIAE
THE newly-updated electoral
rolls will remain as they are, Electoral Commissioner Andrew Trawen
said.
“Rolls that had been updated are final and legal and I stand by it. If
there’s any issue to be raised, I think the correct avenue would be the
Court of Disputed Returns,” Mr Trawen said yesterday.
This follows reports of candidates threatening to take the Electoral
Commission to the court over discrepancies in the current electoral
rolls.

Polling delayed in remote parts of Gulf

By SHEILA LASIBORI

POLLING in remote parts of Gulf province
has reportedly been delayed due to bad weather.
This has resulted in the unavailability of polling officials and
equipment.
Polling was supposed to have started last Saturday.
Gulf provincial police commander Insp Heni Vagi said his officers had
been deployed to Kikori, Kotindanga and Kaintiba.
He said polling officers from Port Moresby were supposed to be deployed
to Malalaua last week.
These officers and polling officials left Kerema yesterday afternoon for
Malalaua, where polling is expected to start today.
Polling officials and police officers travelled to Baimuru last Sunday.
Mr Vagi said he was not expecting trouble during polling in Gulf
province and attributed this to the new limited preferential voting (LPV)
system.
Meanwhile, polling started in the provincial capital, Kerema, yesterday
and is expected to end today.