15 Jun 2005

New Bougainville government to start work within weeks

1:41 pm on 15 June 2005

The President of the Papua New Guinea province of Bougainville, Joseph Kabui, says it will be a couple of weeks before his new government gets down to work.

The assembly is being sworn in near Buka today in front of dozens of dignitaries.

Mr Kabui, who announced his vice president Joseph Watawi and the women's representative in Cabinet, Magdalene Toroansi, last week, says he expects to name the other seven members of the executive some time next week.

He also says the new MPs will be put through an induction course next Monday.

"Where the administration officials, lawyers and everybody, will explain to the newly elected members the various responsibilities and requirements and so forth that the members have to know, so these are the sort of things they'll be working on, or taking us through."