Claims Prime Minister offered ‘K40m to drop case’

From the Post Courier

THE Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare is alleged to have offered a substantial amount of money to have disgruntled landowners drop their court challenge which has stopped development of the deep sea tailing placement project in Basamuk by Ramu NiCo Limited (MCC).

The offer is alleged to have been made to Sama Mellambo, who is one of the plaintiffs in the court case, during a closed door meeting held with Sir Michael at the Madang Resort on Monday morning.

Mr Mellambo when responding to questions put to him by this paper yesterday confirmed that an offer had been made to him for K40 million to withdraw the case.

He said he had received a call while he was at home, from a person whom he did not name, and was told that the Prime Minister was in town and wanted to meet with him.

He said a vehicle was sent to his family home and because there was nobody else to go with him, as a witness and for court purposes should the need arise, had opted to take his wife along with him.

He said at the hotel they were instructed to wait until the PM was ready. At 11am, he and his wife were ushered into one of the conference rooms where they met Sir Michael. Mr Mellambo said during the exchanges he was presented with a document containing social and economic development projects to the tune of K40 million and asked to “sign off’’ on it. He said the projects would cover all four impact areas.

“I was put in an awkward position and I don’t know why I was being asked to sign off on the deals when rightfully these were matters that should be dealt with by the respective landowner chairmen. Because the issue of the Ramu Nickel Foundation (RNF) was brought up I thought I should pursue it in the discussions as this is something that is well overdue.

“I am fighting for my land and my people and I would like this to be made clear and this to be respected,” he said. Mr Mellambo said because the projects were part of the project agreement and would include a number of areas and involve the RNF he had asked for Madang Governor Sir Arnold Amet and Raicoast MP James Gau Gelak to be at the meeting and to also have a look at the document.

He said he was told there would be a follow-up meeting next Wednesday.

Following the meeting with Mr Mellambo, Sir Arnold and Mr Gau had called a press conference during which Sir Arnold said that he Mr Gau were helping with talks with landowners, civil society leaders, ward councillors and the LLG presidents and church leaders who were open to transparent dialogue.

He said that they were also in the process of getting the company involved, government, Environment plan, Mineral Resources Authority and the Mineral Resources Development Corporation to explain to the people about the DSTP.

During the conference Mr Gau said that when he met Mr Mellambo, he was critical about the DSTP but he said that Mr Mellambo told him that the reason behind the people taking out a court injunction was the Government’s failure to honour its commitments which the PM personally committed to, including the establishment of the RNF to be funded by the Government for K20 million.

Mr Gau said that among other things, the landowners were denied spinoff benefits too, prompting the court injunction as well. He said that the Government was in negotiations with the landowners to settle the matter of court in “the Madang way’’. He said that they had reached an understanding with Mr Mellambo to resolve this issue and also to advise the plaintiff’s lawyer to settle the matter out of court.

Mr Gau said that Mr Mellambo had given an undertaking that as long as the Government honoured its commitment, he would withdraw the case. Mr Mellambo is just one of the five plaintiffs who have taken out a court injunction stopping work on the DSTP.

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