The Native Iowan

PM under fire: Opposition hit back with fresh allegations

OPPOSITION Leader Dr Derek Sikua has called on Prime Minister Danny Philip to stop interfering in operations of the country’s state-owned enterprises.

The Opposition yesterday launched yet another attack with fresh allegations against the Prime Minister.

This followed allegations of corruption regarding the sale of a Government house to the Member of Parliament for West Honiara Namson Tran and the SIEA debt settlement arrangement by a local company.

Dr Sikua made the call after obtaining a copy of a letter by the Prime Minister himself directing the board of the Copra Export Marketing Authority to issue an immediate copra export license to ‘M.H. Cash and Carry Supermarket Limited’ a new foreign investor.

The Opposition Leader said the action by the Prime Minister is yet again another case of his abuse of his official position and also undermined the power vested in the CEMA board by the State-owned Enterprises Act for the issuance of commodities export licenses.

Dr Sikua said the Opposition believed Prime Minister Philip could have vested interests in the ‘M.H. Cash& Carry Limited’- a subsidiary of the W.R Carpenter Group – a Malaysian company – which has major investments in Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Tonga or else he would not have taken the time to write the letter.

He said the Opposition was considering to take the matter up with the Leadership Code Commission to add on to the Prime Minister’s other alleged corruptive deals.

“The Opposition is gravely concerned about the Prime Minister’s continuing abuse of his position and we will certainly consider reporting the matter to the LCC for investigation.”

Dr Sikua said Solomon Islands cannot afford to have a Prime Minister who spends his official time writing letters of directives to the state-owned enterprises for the benefit of himself and his cronies.

“He is supposed to serve the national interest, not the interests of a few people or companies,” Dr Sikua said.