One of the members of the new southern bloc of MPs formed in the Papua New Guinea Parliament, Dr Puka Temu, says they will aim to push for development programmes as a group.
24 MPs have committed to support an organisation that will have its own secretariat, possibly under the title of the Southern Development Council, which will encompass all the provinces along the south PNG coast - the area of the country formerly known as Papua.
Dr Temu says with this leverage they want a total development package.
"We are talking about tourism, we are talking about infrastructure, transport, roads, ports, airports, start creating markets, organising our farmers into co-operatives and fishermen into co-operatives. We will negotiate with the fishing industry to try and bring a loining factory on this side on the southern region."
