Govt must have raked up a hefty Falcon bill

Source: The National -Monday, October 31st 2011 ONE of the first popular decisions the government made soon after taking over on Aug 2 was to put the Falcon jet up for sale. Just hours after making that decision, Deputy Prime Minister Belden Na­mah and some ministers were taking joy rides around the country on the jet. Then the prime minister went globetrotting on­board this ex­pensive toy, flying to Fiji, New York, Canberra and recently to Perth for the CHOGM. If I am not wrong, this government, within three months, has used the aircraft more than the previous government had in the last 12 months leading to its ouster. The prime minister has since changed his stance to say that the aircraft has been sold to Air Niu­gini and will be chartered by the government for its use. That is very good news indeed. But was that not the same arrangement that the previous government had in place? And what about the K20 million the government owes Air Niugini? And if the rate of K20,000 per hour is true, just imagine the costs of the trips taken by our prime minister and his entourage. Indeed, our prime minister has quickly assumed the reputation of a globetrotter. The entourage and the costs added onto the aircraft charter grossly in­crea­ses the costs of each trip. It would be interesting if someone can publicly tell us the total amount raked up so far. On the home front, when the prime minister went globetrotting, his deputy and acting prime minister made decisions only to have the prime minister rescind them when he arrived home. Where are we heading, Papua New Guinea? Christopher Janjuwing Port Moresby