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  • Baisu prison in dire straits, unfit for human dwelling

    The National Court has issued an urgent warning to the Government, revealing that the biggest Baisu Correctional Facility in Western Highlands is on the brink of collapse—physically, operationally, and constitutionally.

    In a scathing 27-page judgment, Justice Graham Ellis, the resident judge of the Wabag National Court, found that the current conditions at Baisu amount to serious breaches of human rights under Sections 36(1), 37(1), and 37(17) of the Constitution. These provisions guarantee humane treatment, dignity, and lawful protection for all persons, including those in custody.

    What the Court uncovered is nothing short of shocking.

    Baisu, which houses prisoners from seven Highlands provinces, is crumbling. The Provincial Health Authority has condemned the administrative block, three maximum-security cell blocks, and even the rations storage building. Guard towers are so unstable that officers refuse to use them.

    Sewerage is overflowing. Water is stored in buckets due to supply failures. Power cuts are constant. The perimeter fence is rotting. And overcrowding has reached dangerous levels, with 109 remandees squeezed into space built for only 80.

    The judge noted that the situation has already contributed to escapes—including nearly all accused persons awaiting a major Porgera trial.

    A health assessment from 2023 found 68 “very serious” hazards and 27 “serious” hazards, none were rated minor.

    In 2023, a Parliamentary Committee estimated Baisu needed K49 million in urgent upgrades. Yet only K4 million has been spent in the past three years.

    The Correctional Services Minister’s affidavit revealed that although budget appropriations totaled K91 million for prisons nationwide between 2023–2025, only K21 million was ever released—leaving Baisu and other facilities severely underfunded.

    For 2026, the Government has budgeted K5.6 million for Baisu—barely enough to tackle the most critical repairs like sewerage restoration, water systems, electrical upgrades, cell block reconstruction and perimeter fencing.

    Most concerning, the Court noted: There is no plan if Baisu is forced to shut down entirely.

    While the Court stopped short of ordering the Government to spend money, warning such an intervention could breach separation of powers, Justice Ellis made it clear that Baisu poses a real risk of mass escape or closure.

    In an unprecedented move, the Court has ordered the judgment to be circulated to every MP before the Budget session, urging swift action.

    “This is not a political issue,” Justice Ellis stressed. “It is a constitutional one.”

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  • Telefomin MP and State Minister Solan Mirism passes on

    The nation and the people of Telefomin are mourning the sudden loss of Telefomin MO and Works Minister Solan Mirisim

    Mirism passed away early this morning at the Port Moresby International Hospital after a brief illness.

    The long-serving Telefomin MP, first elected in 2012, leaves behind a legacy that reshaped some of the country’s most remote communities and positioned PNG on a stronger path toward infrastructure connectivity and sustainable development.

    Mirisim, who most recently served as Minister for Works and Highways under the Marape Government, was a driving force behind the Connect PNG Program. His leadership propelled major national highways, key missing-link road projects, and landmark infrastructure upgrades that opened access for millions. Among the standout achievements during his tenure was the construction of the nation’s longest footbridge at Papa-Lealea—an emblem of his commitment to connecting rural families to essential services and opportunities.

    He also previously served as Minister for Forests, where he steered reforms aimed at promoting downstream processing and sustainable forestry practices.

    Born and raised in the rugged Telefomin District of West Sepik Province, Mirisim rose from humble beginnings. After completing his local education and later earning a Certificate in Business Management from Lae Business College, he built a successful career in business and community advocacy before entering national politics.

    Today, his passing is being felt across the political spectrum and throughout the country’s northwestern highlands, where his vision and hands-on leadership earned him deep respect.

    Funeral arrangements and further official statements from the Government will be released in the coming days.

    The people of Papua New Guinea, especially the Telefomin community, are united in grief as they honour a leader remembered for his determination, calm leadership, and unwavering service to his nation.

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  • Polye request return of his mobile phone, while facing K1.7 million corruption allegations

    The Waigani District Court this morning, issued directives for Investigators from the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), to return the mobile phone of ousted Kandep MP Don Polye.
    Polye’s personal mobile device was confiscated by members of the ICAC team during the time of his arrest.
    Polye’s lawyer, Edward Sasingian of Sasingian Lawyers, made an oral application before Magistrate Paul Puri Nii, asking the court to issue formal directives for the mobile device to be returned.
    The ICAC prosecutor did not object to the request and the magistrate issued formal directives for the return of the moblie device to Mr Polye.
    Meantime, Polye was formally arraigned on three charges relating to over K1.7 million.

    The charges include attempting to Pervert Justice, Conspiracy to Defeat Justice,  and Official Corruption. The court adjourned the case to February 16, 2026, allowing police continue investigations.

    The allegations stem from an ICAC probe launched around November 2024 into the suspected misappropriation of K1,757,849.44 belonging to the Papua New Guinea Sports Foundation. Police say the funds were paid across four transactions to Karma Investments Ltd, a company owned by Kathleen Ruth James, Polye’s alleged wife.

    Investigators allege Polye, then Minister for Higher Education and Sports around the time, directed PNGSF to award contracts to Karma Investments without any proper tender process. The contracts, issued in December 2023, covered sporting equipment, consumables, and social mapping.

    ICAC raids throughout 2025 uncovered documents, digital evidence, and CCTV footage linking Polye to attempts to interfere with the investigation. Forensic analysis allegedly revealed communications between Polye and PML Project Manager Benjamin Malol, arranging a meeting at the Grand Papua Hotel, where they are accused of discussing the deletion of evidence.

    Further, Polye is alleged to have contacted an ICAC officer directly via calls and WhatsApp messages, seeking information and attempting to influence the course of the investigation.

    If proven, the allegations could amount to serious breaches of the Criminal Code, including official corruption and obstruction of justice.

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  • Polye released, welcomes arrest

    Court-ousted Kandep MP Don Polye has welcomed the arrest and charges against him, saying the independent investigations by Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) must go on.

    “I fully respect the process and I will abide by it,” Mr Polye said shortly after being released from the Boroko police station lockup after posting an hefty K50,000 court bail.

    His lawyer Edward Sasingian of Sasingian Lawyers managed to apply for bail and have Mr Polye released around 10pm.

    Polye is facing misappropriation charges of over K1.7 million around the time he was the Minister for Higher Education and Sports.

    Police alleged that Polye, through the PNG Sports Foundation, had engaged a company of his wife to procure sporting equipments for the PNG Games.

    Four separate payments were made totalling K1,757,849 44 between January 2, 2024 and May 3, 2024. The monies were paid  to a company called Karma Investments Limited,  purportedly for the supply of sporting equipment and other infrastructures for the purpose of the games.

    However, police alleged that the funds  were put to own use, way outside of its intended purposes.

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  • Opposition Leadership to be known today

    As directed by the Supreme Court on Friday, the members of the Opposition will meet today at 10am and appoint their leader.

    The nation will know today whether Kiriwina-Goodenough MP Douglas Tomuresia will regain his leadership or Chuave MP James Nomane, North-Fly MP James Donald or any other potential Opposition members.

    The democratic appointment process would through secret ballot.

    The Supreme Court gave the directions  after a legal challenge by James Nomane, who was the former Deputy Opposition Leader.

    Nomane had claimed that he was voted in by a majority of opposition MPs, but whose appointment was later rejected by the Speaker of Parliament.

    The current Opposition Leader, Douglas Tomuriesa, disputes Nomane’s claim and maintains his own legitimacy.

    By issuing a clear deadline, the Court has intervened decisively to end the leadership limbo. Opposition MPs now face a choice: rally behind Nomane, reaffirm Tomuriesa, or select a third figure — but only once the election is conducted under a court-mandated timetable.

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  • Don Polye arrested, locked up

    Court-ousted Kandep MP, Don Polye is now at the Boroko police cells after being arrested few minutes ago.
    This is the first arrest carried out since the establishment of the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC)
    The allegations relates to official corruption and misappropriation of funds when Polye was the Minister for Higher Education and Sports.
    His wife was earlier arrested on similar allegations.
    Newslink is reliably told that Polye’s lawyer Edward Sasingian of Sasingian Lawyers, had applied for bail at the Waigani District Court before a magistrate and Polye is expected to be released soon.
    The bail money is K50,000.
    More updates to follow.

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  • COURT THROWS OUT SINAI’S BID TO STOP REMOVAL

    Sinai Simon Sinai is yet to come to terms with his removal as the Electoral Commissioner of Papua New Guinea.
    He rushed to the National Court with an urgent application seeking interim restraining orders to stop his removal and the subsequent acting appointment, arguing that his removal was improper as he hasn’t reached his retirement age as yet.
    However, his bid was refused by the Waigani National Court yesterday afternoon.
    Sinai was removed as the Electoral Commissioner by the Electoral Commission Appointments Committee after the Committee was satisfied thathas reached his retirement age of 60. The appointing committee therefore appointed a Margaret Vagi as acting Commissioner.
    Prime Minister James Marape who is the Chairman of the appointing committee also confirmed that Sinai had reached retirement age, and therefore was replaced according to law.
    However, Sinai queries that he still hasn’t reached retirement age and that he still has some time left as per his contract.
    His first attempt in court was unsuccessful.

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  • Paraka fights a lone battle, tells court no lawyers willing to assist him

    Paul Paraka, once a prominent lawyer and a powerful figure who owned the biggest law firm in the country that recruited, groomed and build many lawyers, is now fighting a lone battle.

    “No lawyers are willing to assist me with my cases,” Paraka told a judge at the Waigani Supreme Court on Tuesday this week as he battles his conviction and 20-years imprisonment for misappropriating of over K162 million in public funds.

    His voice subdued but steady, Mr Paraka pleaded to the single Supreme Court judge, Justice David Cannings, to hear him out and grant him his application requesting for an extension of time to file an application for leave for a Slip Rule application.

    For Paraka, who once helped shape the lawyering profession by recruiting bulk of new law graduates every year, the courtroom has now become a place he walks into alone. He told the court that for more than a year he had pleaded for help from the Office of the Public Solicitor and approached private lawyers, only to be turned away each time.

    “My numerous requests to the Office of the Public Solicitor and even private lawyers were all unsuccessful,” he said, explaining why he was seeking an extension of time to file an application for leave to make a Slip Rule application.

    Seated as he made his submissions, Paraka painted a picture of a man battling not only the justice system but his own declining health. He recalled how he filed his initial application within the required 21-day period in November 2024, and how, almost immediately afterwards, his world collapsed.

    He became critically ill and was hospitalised on November 1, 2024. Doctors later diagnosed him with severe triple-vessel coronary artery disease. The emotional strain following the dismissal of his appeal, he said, “crushed” him and accelerated the deterioration of his health.

    Medical records tendered in court showed that Paraka had undergone multiple invasive angiogram procedures and currently suffers seven arterial blockages. Specialists, he said, are recommending urgent overseas surgery.

    “Your Honour, that is why I couldn’t file and serve my application for extension on time,” he told the court.

    With no legal assistance while in custody, Paraka said he prepared his Slip Rule arguments alone by drafting 37 grounds of alleged judicial “slips” from his prison cell.

    But Acting Public Prosecutor Helen Roalakona opposed the application, arguing that although Paraka filed on time, he failed to serve it within the mandatory 21-day period. She said the grounds raised were not slips at all, but attempts to revisit arguments already rejected by the National Court.

    Justice Cannings agreed that Paraka had managed to file other proceedings and should not be treated differently. However, because the application itself was filed within time, the court still had jurisdiction to grant an extension.

    Justice Cannings did grant Paraka his applicationg, allowing Paraka more time for him to file his application for leave for a Slip Rule application in the Supreme Court.

    Justice Cannings set the matter for directions hearing next Monday.

    The court will then determine whether a single Supreme Court judge or a full bench will hear the Slip Rule application. A tentative hearing date has been set for Tuesday, 16 December 2025, at 1:30pm. 

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  • Supreme Court to hear Yama’s substantive appeal

    After a long delay, the full hearing of the substantive appeal over the Madang Provincial seat will proceed in the Supreme Court at Waigani on November 27, 2025.

    The appeal is pursued by former Madang Governor Sir Peter Charles Yama, seeking to overturn a National Court decision that dismissed his election petition challenging the results of the 2022 national election for the Madang Provincial seat. The incumbent Ramsey Pariwa is named as first respondent, with the Electoral Commission as second respondent.

    Yama initially filed the election petition after the 2022 polls, alleging improper conduct and undue influences during the counting that swung votes to Pariwa.

    However, the National Court dismissed Sir Peter’s petition on October 23, 2023, on the basis that Yama’s key witness’s evidence was inconsistent and lacked necessary corroboration.

    The court found that Sir Peter’s key witness gave evidences that were not supported by other witnesses and that the evidences were not credible.

    This prompted Sir Peter to further appeal the dismissal in the Supreme Court, seeking leave to review the National Court’s decision.

    Following the grant of leave, the incumbent Mr Pariwa filed a number of applications to dismissed the review application.

    Recently, a Supreme Court bench allowed Sir Peter to press his review to a substantive hearing by dismissing objections from Pariwa that sought to halt the progress of the petition and granting Sir Peter the opportunity to have the case heard by a full bench.

    In the substantive hearing, the Supreme Court is expected to determine a grey area of law relating to arguments on whether corroboration was required in an election petition trial.

    Sir Peter contents that the trial judge had erred in fact and law when his (Sir Peter’s) witness in chief gave direct evidences during the trial and those evidences were not refuted or countered by Pariwa’s witnesses.

    He also argues that corroboration was not required in an election petition case as it was a provision of its own according to law, and that the trial judge had erred in finding otherwise.

    If the Supreme Court rule in favor of Sir Peter, this would set a new precedent for future election petition cases.

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  • Nupiri Congratulates SHP LLG Winners, Warns Against Roll Inflation Ahead of 2027 Polls

    Southern Highlands political leader Peter Nupiri has congratulated all newly elected councillors across the province, praising electoral officials and communities for steering the Local Level Government (LLG) elections to a successful conclusion despite early challenges.

    In a statement released on 21 November 2025, Mr Nupiri said the electoral process had “now formally concluded, as evidenced by the return of the writs today.” He commended the work of Election Manageress Grace Wong, her team of Assistant Returning Officers, polling officials and ward leaders, saying their “time, professionalism, and dedication” ensured a generally smooth election under demanding circumstances.

    However, Mr Nupiri raised serious concerns about ongoing voter roll inflation, particularly in Nipa-Kutubu, Mendi and Imbongu. He said some hiccups experienced during polling stemmed from “common roll-inflation issues identified in the Nipa-Kutubu electorate,” but noted these were expected to be fixed during roll updates before the 2027 national elections.

    Mr Nupiri outlined the province’s official voter numbers to emphasise the scale of the problem. “The official registered voter roll for Southern Highlands Province in the 2022 National Elections stood at 508,486 voters,” he said. Based on normal population trends, the roll for 2027 should sit “at approximately 530,000.”

    He warned that “any figure significantly above this threshold must be treated as a serious irregularity and a potential attempt by individuals with vested interests to manipulate and defraud the electoral process.”

    He described the inflation of voter rolls as a recurring and dangerous practice in parts of the province. “The insertion of fictitious names for political advantage is illegal and undermines the democratic rights of our people,” he stressed. He appealed to those responsible to “refrain immediately from such unlawful practices and to allow for a genuine, transparent, and lawful voter registration process to take place.”

    Mr Nupiri also addressed those preparing to contest the presidency of more than 25 LLGs across Southern Highlands Province, wishing them well and declaring that he would not take sides. “On this occasion, I have chosen to remain strictly neutral, even though some of those contesting — including sitting presidents — are close friends and long-standing supporters,” he said. “It is only fair and proper that all candidates be given the opportunity to contest freely and without any perception of bias or undue influence.”

    He concluded by calling on all stakeholders, candidates, communities and authorities to work together to promote “a peaceful, fair and transparent democratic process” as the province heads toward the 2027 National General Elections.

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