The Papua New Guinea Institute of National Affairs says it is critical people can speak out against the government so it is held more accountable over its use of public funds.
Its executive director, Paul Barker, recently faced criticism from two politicians over comments he made about the 2014 budget, including his warning about the dangers of borrowing against future earnings.
Mr Barker says it is against PNG's own interests for the public and institutions to be silent.
"Let's face it, over many years there has been a lot of abuse of public funds that have occurred and this is partly because there hasn't been enough questioning by the official watchdogs, by the institutions, such as parliament itself, but also by the wider community."
Paul Barker says the government is currently running a deficit budget and needs to carefully prioritise to have maximum impact.
