It's been claimed at an Australian Senate committee inquiry that the Chief Secretary of the Papua New Guinea government approached a director of controversial Australian immigration detention contractor Paladin for financial support.
Manus Island detainees and security. Photo: Supplied
The Sydney Morning Herald reported Sir Isaac Lupari's alleged dealings with Paladin were raised by Labor senator Kristina Keneally during her questioning of the Home Affairs secretary Michael Pezzullo.
Paladin was controversially awarded more than $US356 million in contracts from Home Affairs when it took charge of the now closed down refugee detention centre on Manus Island in 2017.
Keneally produced an email sent by former Paladin director Ian Stewart to senior Home Affairs official David Nockels saying a PNG minister and a senior public servant, "were unhappy that payments did not come to them either directly or through subcontractors".
Steward had also noted there had been similar approaches from another senior PNG official.