Pacific

Havila conviction sign of PNG judiciary working - TI

16:04 pm on 25 September 2014

Transparency International Papua New Guinea says the latest conviction of a national MP for misuse of funds is a sign that the country still has a thriving judiciary.

The Governor of Gulf Province, Havila Kavo, has been found guilty of misusing about 50,000 US dollars from a trust account belonging to the people of Kikori district for infrastructure.

He is to be sentenced next month.

In April, the Pomio MP, Paul Tiensten, was given a nine-year jail term for the misuse of four million US dollars.

TI PNG's chairman Lawrence Stephens says it's encouraging to see active prosecution of people involved in corruption but he worries that too often the big fish swim free.

"I sometimes note how quickly people who have stolen a relatively small amount of money from say their employer are processed by the legal system and how when it comes to multiples of millions, it seems to take forever."

TI PNG's chairman Lawrence Stephens