"A Cabinet of 39 Ministers is Clumsy" by James Nomane, MP.

A Cabinet of 39 Ministers is Clumsy (30.01.25)

Since PNG’s Independence in 1975, no Prime Minister has appointed 39 Ministers to Cabinet. The superficial appointment of 12 Vice-Ministers is also unnecessary and wasteful. 39 Ministers in Cabinet will only augment the complexity of decision-making, confusion, and ineffectiveness of government. The Prime Minister has created an obese, convoluted, and clumsy Cabinet that has proven to be lethargic since 2019, unable to develop solutions for the litany of problems that it has created, exacerbated, and run away from. For example, worsening inflation by compromising the Central Bank’s independence, creating a law-and-order crisis in Enga province and foregoing revenues and taxes by shutting down Porgera gold mine, and weakening public institutions across the board through nepotism and overlapping of Ministries. 

Political expediency is the sole reason for the 39 ministerial appointments. For the sake of staying in power, the Prime Minister has created superfluous ministries with no enabling legislation, rather than reducing the size of Cabinet to make it lean, responsive, and effective.  

Is Papua New Guinea better off since 2019? Absolute not! The country is worse off. Every citizen can attest to the deterioration of the country under the Marape government. The 39 Ministers are furtive and refrain from public scrutiny. With very little to show on the ground, we must demand greater accountability, and question what these 39 Ministers discuss during National Executive Council (NEC) meetings. After all, their decisions will determine the course of the nation. 

39 Ministers could not fit on a Toyota Coaster bus. Akin to the Tower of Babel, confusion will reign as it has since 2019. The government has proven to be inept and left wanting. Sound policy is replaced with lip service. We are on the brink of a failed state lacking capacity and legitimacy. Respect for the government has fizzled out. The concept of a government for the people, by the people, and of the people is an illusion. The prospect of a virtuous government has been replaced by a kakistocracy. Is the Prime Minister that incapable of doing his job, that he needs three MPs to hold his hand in the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister, and Vice-Minister Assisting the Prime Minister? Lo and Behold – only in PNG! 

After 5 years of missed opportunities, failed budgets, and falsehoods by this Prime Minister, I wonder whether any of these 39 Ministers will remove “secret ballots” from NEC? Is it too much to ask all these Ministers to come out and be accountable to the people and explain how they have contributed to the country’s prosperity since 2019? The joke should be up by now, but we are all still waiting for the punchline. 

ENDS

Authorised for release by:

Hon. James Nomane, MP

Deputy Leader of the Opposition 

Member for Chuave 

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