Pacific

Watchdog says ICAC in PNG won't work without other changes

06:47 am on 7 April 2014

A watchdog group in Papua New Guinea says the government will need to do a lot of work to improve the quality of governance before its proposed corruption commission can achieve anything.

The PNG Parliament unanimously passed legislaton to set up an Independent Commission Against Corruption last month.

Transparency PNG's Lawrence Stephens says it is a good first step but there is a lot to do to make such a body work.

He says when ICACS work properly there is generally good governance, and that is not the case in PNG.

"ICAC is one part of that, part of something in which Transparency PNG has been involved in over the years, but it also involves improving the police, the various other arms that are involved, in making sure that corruption is curtailed."

Transparency PNG's Lawrence Stephens.